


He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not

by headofmarimo



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Akira and the others are in their early 20s for the AU, Akira thinks he's smooth, Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, Blackmail, But in reality he's just a big dork, Dating, Denial of Feelings, First Time Blow Jobs, Fluff and Angst, Forced Relationship, Frottage, Idiots in Love, Implied/Referenced Suicide, In which Kamoshida's still a scumbag that everyone hates, Just like Ryuji, M/M, Masturbation, Past Abuse, Pining, Porn with Feelings, Rating changed because of racey scenarios, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-28
Updated: 2018-08-16
Packaged: 2018-12-08 04:37:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 33,264
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11639064
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/headofmarimo/pseuds/headofmarimo
Summary: AU in which Akira is the owner of a flower shop and Ryuji is a rather disgruntled customer that comes in.(DISCONTINUED)





	1. Wearing Gloves While Gardening Is an Important Safety Precaution

**Author's Note:**

> Whoahhhhhh I'm writing something that's not (mostly) porn??? This was my attempt at writing that had a bit more story to it, so hope you guys enjoy reading!

_Tulips, hydrangeas, roses…_

Akira delicately held the rose in his hand and admired the brilliant red petals that curled elegantly away from the center of the flower. He traced his fingers over the soft petals before grasping on to the stem, pruning shears in the other hand raised into position. The blade of the shears sliced through the stem with relative ease and the rose fell lightly into his palm.

Although the rose appeared healthy at a glance, upon closer inspection Akira could see the brown scars that marred the shriveled petals clinging to the base of the flower head.  _A wonder how something so beautiful can also be so imperfect_. He sighed, tossing the rose into a plastic bag that held other impurities like it when a sharp sting of pain suddenly caused him to wince. He withdrew his hand from the plastic bag and stared curiously at the red puncture in his fingertip; a drop of blood began to gather at the small wound before it finally trickled down and left a thin trail of crimson in its wake.

He had been careless about the thorns.

Akira pulled out a towel from the pocket of his apron and wiped the blood off before the tinkling of the entrance bell alerted him that he had a customer. He stuffed the pruning shears and towel back into his apron, carefully placed the pot of roses back on the shelf they came from, and walked out from behind the shop counter. “Welcome.”

“Hey.”

Well, this certainly wasn’t a customer he was expecting.

Scruffy blond hair that stuck out unevenly, as if rebelling against growing in a uniform direction, an oversized hoodie and slightly baggy pants that scrunched over heavy black sneakers, and a subtle slouch that gave off an uncaring and crude nature. The man standing at the entrance was damn well near the opposite of the usual customers Akira received on a regular day.

The customer glanced around the store, as if sizing it up, before directing his attention back to Akira. Akira gave a small smile to hide his surprise, trying his best not to avert his eyes from the other’s vehement gaze. “What can I do for you, sir?”

“ _Huh_?” the blond huffed out, as if irritated, and a small prickle of annoyance began to poke through Akira as well. What was this guy’s problem? He walks into his shop and then doesn’t even have any clue about what he wants? This delinquent look-alike could at least show some manners and not waste his time! He continued to smile despite his mounting displeasure at the other’s impudence. “Is there something you’d like from here in particular,  _sir_?” he asked, emphasizing the last word through his clenched smile. The other man didn’t respond, instead continuing to stare intently at Akira, and Akira subconsciously hovered his hand over the handle of his pruning shears in case the blond had more sinister intentions than buying flowers. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, brown eyes broke away from grey ones to stare at the floor.

“Oh, right. Sorry. Er…” the other man mumbled, suddenly taking an interest in the tiled floor beneath him. Akira could see the tips of his ears turning red.

What.

How did this brash delinquent suddenly become bashful and shy?

Akira was just receiving one surprise after another today.

“I, um… well, I need something, from, here. Something, that, y’know, means an apology? I mean, I’m not sure if that’s an actual thing you can spell out with flowers but…” as the blond continued to stumble over his words, Akira felt his exasperation dissipate. Oh. He should’ve known.

It was a case he’s seen quite a few times in his line of work. Some unfortunate fellow’s managed to anger their significant other and wanted to make up for it with some pretty flowers; in the cases that the customer really wanted to make the bouquet special their own pride made it difficult for them to flat-out say what they wanted and why. As the tension left his body, Akira raised a hand to stop the other man from rambling, the smile on his face now feeling a bit more genuine. “Say no more. I think you’ve made yourself quite clear. Come with me, please.”

He slipped past the rows of tables displaying vivid and colorful potted flowers, the blond following suit behind him, until he arrived at the bouquet display, bundles of radiant flowers gathered neatly into slender vases that lined the wooden shelf.

“I usually don’t get customers this late in the evening,”

“Yeah, well, some shit came up and I just happened to stumble upon here when it did.”

“Well, I’m flattered that you picked my humble shop of all places. Now, let’s see...”

Akira shuffled from one vase to the next, noting the types of flowers resting in each vase: “Roses are usually the most common ones used in an apology; a red and white arrangement can make a lovely apology gift to a special someone, but if it’s a slip of the memory you want to ask forgiveness for, pink carnations are a wonderful way to say you’ll never forget about the recipient again. If you want cooler, less flashy colors hyacinths can do the job rather well…”

“Jeez, dude, um, I don’t know just pick something that you think would be the best I guess?”

Akira turned away from the bouquets to stare at the customer. “Well, if that’s the case then you need to give me a better understanding of the situation at hand. Would you be comfortable in sharing more information with me?”

“Um, well, I probably shouldn’t. I mean, it  _is_ kinda personal and I’m pretty sure any normal person would seriously judge me for it.”

Akira sighed at that. Well, that’s helpful. Might as well just give him a random bunch of flowers and get the cash then…but then again, he would be lying if he said he wasn’t a little curious now about what was troubling the other man.

He leaned in closer to the blond and gave another pleasant smile, making himself appear as reassuring as possible. “Well, I never quite considered myself a normal-” he paused and his smile vanished, eyes widened in surprise.

“Hm? W-what’s wrong?”

“…your nose, it’s bleeding.”

Sure enough, a crimson path was dribbling down from his nose and trailing steadily downward towards his chin.

“Ah, shit! I  _knew_  something was wrong!” the blond turned away, covering his face with his hand as if to shield the flow of blood from view.

“D-do you need a moment? We have a bathroom. It’s over there by the lilies.”

“Yeah, thanks.”

He walked away hurriedly, and the sound of rushing water followed the slam of a door. A few minutes later and Akira heard the faucet squeak to a halt; the other man returned, agitation apparent on his face.

“Are you feeling alright?”

“Yeah, don’t worry about it. It’s just from — never mind, forget it.”

Upon closer inspection Akira could see that the blond looked rather battered; small cuts streaked his right cheek, and a purple bruise bloomed underneath his eye. A few moments of silence and Akira could see more blood beginning to trickle down from his nose again.

Akira hesitated and decided between pointing it out or resuming business; he decided to go with neither. Instead he took out his towel from his pocket and lightly dabbed it against his client’s nose, the dark blood staining the grey fabric crimson. The man suddenly lurched backward, startled.

“W-what are you doing?”

“I apologize, I just figured that you could use a helping hand.”

“Look, I appreciate it but it’s fine, really.”

Akira stepped forward, this time firmly pressing the towel against the blond’s nose. “You look like you’ve been banged up. Clearly, it’s not fine.”

“Alright, alright, sheesh. You sure you’re fine with me getting this dirty though?”

“Don’t worry, I already used it to clean off some of my own blood earlier.”

“You what?!”

“Relax, I’m using the clean part or, was clean part.”

This time the blond didn’t back away; he gazed at Akira curiously, and as Akira continued to wipe away the remaining blood he gently grasped on to Akira’s wrist, brown eyes still locked on to him. Akira could feel his face starting to burn. “Something wrong?”

“…I can do it myself now, thanks.”

Oh.

He gave the towel to the other man, who pressed it securely over the dribbling blood.

“So…about the flowers you want then.”

“Huh? Oh, right. Well… I guess I’ll go with the red and white roses. The colors seem to be more her style anyways…”

“…Understood.”

Akira carefully removed the desired arrangement from the vase. He walked behind the shop counter and neatly wrapped a pink ribbon around the plastic sheet that held the bouquet together. He watched as his client fumbled with one hand to take out his wallet from his pants and placed a few crumpled bills on the countertop.

“Keep the change.”

“Thank you.”

Afterwards Akira handed him the bouquet of roses.

The other man was about to walk away when Akira hesitated and called out:

“Wait.”

The man looked at him expectantly. “Yeah?”

“Could I… could I get a name for that order?”

A small moment of silence, and Akira saw his face break into a grin underneath the grey cloth of the towel.  _Wisps of rainclouds blocking the sun_. He hoped his face wasn’t flushed again.

“Ryuji Sakamoto.”

“A-alright then… have a lovely evening, Sakamoto-san,”

“Yeah, thanks… uh,”

“Akira Kurusu.”

“Right. Thanks, Kurusu-san.”

Ryuji opened the door and stepped out the shop, the bell tinkling behind him as the glass door swung shut, and as his figure disappeared from view Akira wondered if he would ever drop by again, if he actually  _wanted_ him to drop by again. That partially hidden smile clung to his mind, and he couldn’t seem to shake it out from his memory. He turned from the counter and took the pot of roses off the shelf to resume work, needing some sort of distraction. As he continued to prune a sudden thought struck him.

Ah.

Ryuji had forgotten to return his towel.


	2. Make Sure You Provide Your Plants with a Healthy Amount of Water

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> jhlsjDVflbgf  
> AO3: Have fun deleting these random spaces now! ;)  
> ;-;  
> Anyways. Lets get this story rolling with the second chapter!

“Kurusu-san,”

_He never did return…_

“Kurusu-san?”

_Maybe he thought I wouldn’t want it back…_

“Kurusu-san!”

“Huh?”

Akira was snapped out of his train of thought to see a hand waving impatiently in front of his face.

“Kurusu-san, if you keep watering those flowers they really are going to become water lilies.”

“Ah!”

Akira hastily tilted the watering can upwards, droplets of water still dripping from the spout into the swirling muddy stream that was gradually soaking into the dark soil. Haru was staring at him in concern, and he tried not to show how flustered he was at making such a careless mistake.

It was a brilliant sunny morning; the store was empty aside from the two of them and Haru was helping him tend to the flowers and open up shop as she often did. It seemed that lately, however, Haru was spending more time cleaning up after his own blunders than anything.

“Are you feeling okay? You seem to be spacing out a lot this past week.”

“I’m fine. Sorry to make you worry Okumura-san.”

“Well… if you ever need something, I’m here for you.” she gently patted a small pile of soil around a tulip bulb as she talked.

“Thanks, but really, I’m fine.”

Haru was such a sweet girl, and it was a wonder that someone of her position had even considered working at his small shop. As the recently appointed CEO of the massive Okumura Foods corporation (her father had suffered an untimely death from a heart attack), Haru possessed wealth and status that towered far beyond Akira’s. Yet here she was, helping him plant tulip bulbs with a warm smile on her face.

“I appreciate you coming in to help, Haru, especially when you already have so much to deal with in your main business.”

“Oh no, it’s no trouble at all! I enjoy working here, and my executives don’t look down on this quite as much compared to my usual gardening hobby.”

“Really? Why is that?”

“Mm, something about how it would better my understanding on the way wages are distributed based on the amount of work done.”  She placed the pot carrying the newly planted bulb aside on the metal rack they were huddled over. “But honestly, Akira, I can’t help but worry about you. Just yesterday you spilled an entire bag of fertilizer on the floor, and the day before that you knocked over some of the snapdragons.”

“I know, I’m sorry, it’s just—”

“Did something happen after Yusuke left his shift?”

Akira remained silent at that, but his body visibly tensing up gave away that Haru had hit the nail on the head.

Haru placed her hand over Akira’s. “So there _is_ something wrong. What happened? Did someone try to rob the store again?”

“No, nothing like that, just, well, I guess you could say I met someone…” he muttered.

A small gasp left Haru’s mouth as she clapped her hands together in delight, eyes sparkling. “Oh, Akira, that’s wonderful! Who were they? What were they like?”

Akira could feel his face heating up at Haru’s excitement. “W-well, at first I thought he was just some punk that wanted to trash the store, but after I kept talking to him he actually turned out to be rather nice.” God, why was he feeling so embarrassed right now? He couldn’t even look Haru in the eye, and his hand had tightened into a vice grip on the handle of the watering can as he remembered that glimpse of a smile he saw. “I helped him pick out some flowers and gave him a towel to clean up a bloody nose he got. He forgot to give me the towel back though.”

“So you’ve been waiting for him to return ever since? Oh that’s so romantic!”

“I only want the towel back, that’s all.” he replied firmly.

“Alright, whatever you say,” giggled Haru. “But it’s a shame that he hasn’t come back then. Perhaps he’s just as nervous as you are.”

“Hm, well, it’s only a towel. I guess I don’t really care either way if he decides to return it or not.”

“But you do care about seeing him again.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“Alright, I won’t poke fun at you anymore. Anyways, I think it’s about time we opened up.”

Haru brushed off the dirt clinging to her apron before walking over to the door and turning the paper sign hanging off the glass from “closed” to “open”.

The day proceeded as normal; Haru and Akira went around helping customers pick the flowers they wanted, and noon eventually arrived as people trailed in and out of the store.

“I really wish they didn’t rely on us for every little thing. How am I supposed to know which flowers your aunt might like?” sighed Akira after a customer walked out carrying a bouquet of pink and white flowers; he tapped his fingers impatiently against the shop counter.

“Think of it as a sign of a healthy business that so many people are consulting your shop.” responded Haru as she wrapped an arrangement of ranunculus and peonies together for the bouquet display.

“I guess.”

“Speaking of health, I’m sorry to pry but I’m just so curious! You said that this mysterious stranger suddenly started bleeding?”

“Yeah. He looked like he got beaten up beforehand. Said the flowers he got were an apology to someone.”

“Interesting, and what do you think you’ll say when you see him again?”

“ _If_ I see him again, and what would there be to say besides formalities? I’ll just politely thank him for returning what’s mine and then we can both move on with our lives.”

The entrance bell tinkled again.

“Welcome,” they both said in unison.

“Yo.”

Akira suddenly felt like ducking behind the counter.

“How can I help you, sir?” chimed Haru.

“Oh, sorry, I’m actually not here to buy this time.”

The man walked forward towards Akira and unceremoniously dropped a grey towel onto the counter.

“Just came to return something. I believe this belongs to you?”

Haru glanced between Ryuji and Akira when a look of realization dawned upon her face.

“Oh!”

She looked at Akira again with a mischievous twinkle in her eye. “Well, Kurusu-san, I think I heard a customer calling for my help over by the Chrysanthemums! I’ll leave this one to you then.” she strolled away to the opposite side of the shop.

Sometimes, Akira could’ve sworn Haru had a secret sadistic side that just loved seeing him squirm.

Ryuji was staring rather apprehensively at Akira, as if waiting for his reaction. Akira noticed a large bandage now covered his right cheek.

“Er, sorry that I took so long to give it back. Turns out blood’s kinda difficult to wash out.” murmured Ryuji as he rubbed the back of his neck with his hand.

“So difficult that it took an entire week just to clean?” snapped Akira. Shoot, that came out a lot meaner than intended. So much for being polite.

He could see Ryuji minutely flinch at his words. “Harsh man. I gave it back didn’t I?”

“Only after wasting a week’s worth of my time.” What the hell was he saying? Akira really wanted to punch himself.

“Seriously? You’re telling me that you just spent every single day waiting for your damn towel to come back? What kind of bullshit are you trying to pull?” spat Ryuji; he was raising his voice and people were beginning to stare. Haru watched nervously across the store.

“It’s not bullshit, it’s just, well,” Damn it. What was he supposed to say to make the situation better? “I thought that, you, you know, maybe you wouldn’t,” if there was ever a moment he wanted to die it would be right now, stuttering and slurring his words like an idiot in front of the other man. “Maybe you wouldn’t… ever come back,” Akira’s voice had trailed off into a low mumble. His face was definitely flushed now. “With my towel, I mean.” he briskly added.

“…Oh.” Ryuji’s face had become dusted with a dark shade of pink. “Well, I-I mean, then it’s all good then! I came back, didn’t I? Haha,” He smiled uneasily and shoved both of his hands into the pockets of his jacket. “So, no harm, no worries, right?”  His smile was crinkling the bandage on his face.

Ryuji certainly didn’t sound angry anymore, and the other customers had lost interest in the scene, continuing on in whatever they were doing. Haru was patrolling around and chatting to customers while occasionally glancing over at the two of them.

Akira nodded his head in agreement. “Right. Well, thank you for returning my towel, then. Have a nice day Sakamoto-san.” he bowed to the other like he normally did when sending a customer off.

“Um, wait, actually.”

Ryuji took in a deep breath, held it for a moment, and exhaled. His left foot was tapping against the ground. “I, uh, was actually wondering, if, you know, since it was my fault that it got dirty in the first place and I took so long to return it, that, I could, um, treat you to something as a sort of ‘my bad’?”

What.

Akira looked up from the bow, his heart fluttering at an unfamiliar pace. “I-if you want to, I won’t stop you. But I have work for the rest of today.”

“Oh.” Ryuji slumped his shoulders in disappointment.

“But we can exchange numbers if you want to arrange for some other time.” holy crap, he felt likes his heart was going to jackhammer out of his chest.

“Yeah, s-sure!” stuttered Ryuji. He pulled out his cellphone from his pocket and tossed it to Akira.

Akira returned the phone after placing his number in Ryuji’s phone and adding Ryuji’s number to his own phone. They stood there, awkward smiles still plastered on their faces.

“I, uh, I should get going then. I guess I’ll see you later?” asked Ryuji hopefully.

“Of course. See you later Sakamoto-san.”

After Ryuji exited the store, his back straightened up little taller and his stride a little wider than before, Akira let out an enormous sigh of relief. Haru rushed over to his side.

“Well, how’d it go? I bought you some time by striking up small talk with customers whenever it seemed like they wanted to check out.”

“Thanks Haru. And I think it went pretty well.”

“Wonderful!” beamed Haru. “So when are you two going on your first date?”

Akira spluttered at that. “It’s not actually a date. He just said he wanted to treat me to something as an apology for taking so long to see me.”

“Kurusu-san…that sounds more or less like a date.”

“It does not!” he protested as he snatched the towel off the counter and stuffed it back into his apron. _He even cleaned it for me_.

“Be honest with yourself and your feelings, Kurusu-san. But I suppose you can worry more about that after you’ve finished work.”

Haru left after another half-hour had passed, returning to her own business that she had to manage.  She waved to Akira before she went out the door. “Have a nice day, Kurusu-san! And good luck with that date!”

“It’s not a date,” muttered Akira as he waved back to Haru.

More hours passed until the moon climbed back into the sky, darkness washing over the streets only to be broken up by the glaring artificial lights emitted from business signs and street lamps. Akira pulled off his apron and placed it upon a shelf in the supply room next to several bags of seeds. He flipped the sign on the door from “open” to “closed” and walked out, locking the door behind him. As he walked down the street, phone in hand, he contemplated about what he should write to Ryuji. He typed out a message, only to delete it. He typed another one and went through the same process. Finally, after several more discarded messages Akira settled with one he felt partially satisfied with:

**[Akira] Hey, so continuing from earlier…**

He waited anxiously for a minute until a message popped onto his screen:

**[Ryuji] Oh yeah. Is there anywhere you want to go in particular?**

Thank God, it was the right number.

**[Akira] Well, I know a really nice cafe we could go to.**

**[Ryuji] I don’t really drink coffee.**

**[Akira] They also serve some incredibly good curry.**

**[Ryuji] Alright, sounds good then. When do you wanna meet up?**

**[Akira] I’m free tomorrow at 7.**

**[Ryuji] K, that works for me. See you then!**

**[Akira] Goodbye.**

Wow. That was a lot easier than he expected.

Akira couldn’t help but smile. He hummed a bit to himself while he strolled down the streets, a sense of lightheartedness moving him forward as he thought of seeing Ryuji again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry (but also not sorry) that you get to see me indulge my love of making people awkwardly ask each other out. ^-^  
> Hope you guys enjoyed the second chapter! Thank you for reading!


	3. When Arranging a Meeting with Someone, Always Make Sure That You’ve Properly Discussed the Time and Location

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Helloooo? Anyone here???? Jk ;u;  
> I've read through the comments and wowie thank you guys so much for all the support you've given this fanfic! This chapter ended up being much longer (not sure if that's a good thing though) than what I usually write so I apologize for the delay!  
> Hope you guys enjoy reading!  
> *Warning* There is a a bit of explicit writing at the end (in which Akira thinks of Ryuji and tries to quench his own thirst >w>)

As soon as the last customer went out the door, Akira rushed into the supply room and threw off his apron, tossing it onto a nearby shelf. The tools stored inside the pockets crashed against the shelf in a noisy clatter, but he didn’t give them a second thought as he rushed out the shop, flipped the sign to “closed”, and practically slammed the door behind him before hastily locking it. As he quickly strode down the sidewalk he mapped out a schedule of everything that was to occur in the evening:

 _It’s 6 right now,_ he thought as he waited for the crosswalk signal to change. He dashed over to the other side of the street after what felt like a painfully long wait.

 _It takes about thirty minutes to walk back home, but I can maybe shave it down to twenty if I pick up the pace._ His legs began to move a little quicker.

 _After that I can change out of my clothes, then take the subway to the café and even be a little early._ Yes, it seemed like a perfectly organized schedule. He darted across the sidewalk and turned into a different street, content at how smoothly everything was planned out.

Eventually the familiar shape of his apartment building came into view; the building itself was a bit small, painted a dull shade of white with a few black tiles hanging off the roof, and it only held three floors that had a rather rusty staircase connecting the upper levels to the ground, but the rooms were spacious and the rent was reasonable. The homely apartment had at least provided Akira with comfortable living conditions so far.

Akira practically leapt up the metal stairs that creaked underneath his weight and he landed on the second floor. He rushed over to the door farthest away from the stairs and jabbed his key into the lock before entering into his apartment.  When he was inside he stopped for a moment and leaned against the door to catch his breath, panting as his heart beat at an anxious tempo inside his chest. He checked his wristwatch for the time.

_6:25…okay, I have enough time._

His thoughts were interrupted by a familiar meow beckoning below him followed by the feeling of soft fur brushing against his legs.

Akira looked down and gave a small smile; “Hello, Morgana.”

Luminous blue eyes stared up at Akira as the black-and-white cat sat down on the floor in front of him.

“I’m busy right now, but I promise I’ll pay more attention to you when I get back.” he murmured as he leaned down to stroke the cat’s head. Morgana meowed again and tilted his head to the side as if inquisitive.

Picking out an outfit turned out to be much more time-consuming than Akira had anticipated. He tossed away numerous garments on to his bed as he steadily went through most of the clothes in his dresser.  _This shirt might work, but he might think I don’t care enough to dress nicer. That suit is way too formal though…_  Morgana jumped onto the bed and nuzzled curiously against the growing pile of discarded clothes.

He finally settled with a white jacket and a black shirt that matched the dark hue of the jeans he had picked; it at least felt somewhat stylish, hopefully enough to give off a good impression. He checked his wristwatch again: 6:40. Later than he had expected, but he could maybe still make it in time if he hurried. After slipping on his grey sneakers at the door he lightly stroked Morgana again, who had followed him, and headed out, a mixture of nervousness and excitement coursing through him.

* * *

 

Thankfully, there were no delays with the subway. Akira stepped off the railway train and slipped past the bustling crowd of boarding passengers; he climbed up the stairs leading out of the station. Several more minutes of walking and he arrived at his desired destination. As he stood in front of the door to the café he looked down and checked his watch.  _It’s 7:15. Damn it! Still, he might not be here yet…_

Akira took a deep breath, trying to clear away any remaining uncertainties in his mind, and opened the door.

“Welco — Oh? It’s been a while, Akira.”

“Akira!”

A few seconds later and Akira was getting the wind knocked out of him as he was tackled, a pair of arms wrapping around his waist and squeezing him into a crushing hug.

“It’s…good to see you again, Futaba.” Akira managed to choke out while the young woman continued to squeeze even tighter. Futaba looked up at him and grinned, stepping back from Akira and releasing him from her vice grip as Akira spluttered for air.

“Good to see you too! Figured you would come back soon enough. Did you miss the flavor of Sojiro’s coffee?”

“S-something like that,” panted Akira as his breathing returned to normal. “I wasn’t expecting to see you though, Futaba. How was work?”

“Well, work’s gotten kinda boring these past few days, but I at least got to get off early today since there’s not much to do at the company.”

Despite quickly becoming the top computer programmer at Medjed, a large-scale, state of the art software company, Futaba was still a bit juvenile at heart. Akira had always enjoyed hanging out with her, eating together at the café and playing video games, and he considered her as something like a younger sibling. They had gone to different colleges, but the café always acted as a sort of haven and brought them together from time to time.

“Oh yeah, I brought Makoto here today too! I ran into her while she was on patrol and convinced her to come with me!”

Sure, enough, the police officer was sitting at the counter with a cup of coffee in hand; both she and Sojiro were watching with amused looks on their faces.

“Hello, Akira.” she greeted him.

“Hello, Makoto. It’s been a while.”

Akira had first met Makoto during college since they shared a few classes together. Although at first they were indifferent, sometimes cold, towards each other, they gradually became close after they realized they shared similar morals and opinions on society. Futaba happened to be at the café the first time Akira brought Makoto with him, and even though Futaba was initially shy the two became fast friends after the encounter.

“I’m very happy that the three of us could meet here again! It’s a wonderful coincidence.” commented Makoto before taking a sip of her coffee.

“Exactly! Now we can all hang out together.” beamed Futaba.

Akira was about to agree when he realized he had almost forgotten what he came here for.

“Oh. Actually, I apologize but I just can’t do it today. I actually came here to meet with someone else.” confessed Akira; he could feel the two women and Sojiro’s gazes weighing down on him.

“Meet…with someone? Akira, could it be possible that you..?”  asked Sojiro; he was looking at Akira expectantly with a small smirk of approval. Makoto’s expression lit up with curious interest, the cup of coffee still pressed to her lips.

“Ooooh, Akira. Don’t tell me! You’ve actually managed to land yourself a girl-or-boyfriend?” inquired Futaba

“N-nothing like that! I just happened to meet him while I was working and he offered to take me out for food.”

“I see. So now you’re testing the waters with him on a first date? Hope it goes well then.” chuckled Makoto as she set the coffee aside.

“It’s not exactly a date; more of an apology to me than anything for not returning one of my belongings.” Akira sighed heavily. “Anyways. Boss, did anyone happen to come in here recently?”

“Hm, no one besides those customers over there.” he motioned his hand towards an elderly couple quietly eating in one of the booths. “Since he’s not here yet, you can chat with us while you wait for him to arrive. We’re all pretty curious about this certain someone, after all” Akira shivered as he suddenly sensed a sort of predatory aura emitting from the others.  _Aren’t they being a little too eager about this?_

Akira sat between Futaba and Makoto and they chatted for a while, Akira explaining to them his first encounter with Ryuji as they listened to him and gave their own feedback in return. (“Aw, it’s like the start of a romance novel!” Futaba had interjected, much to Akira’s embarrassment.) Even though it was fun talking to them again, Akira couldn’t help but feel a growing uneasiness as time continued to go by. The elderly couple had eventually gotten up, paid their bill and left, and all that remained was the four of them talking together in the otherwise empty café. Akira glanced down at his watch. It was already 7:50.

“Ummm, Akira, you said you guys were supposed to meet at 7 right? So where is this dude?” questioned Futaba as she swung her legs back and forth beneath the stool.

“It is strange that he hasn’t shown up yet. Maybe he got lost? You did send him the correct location right?” asked Makoto; she had finished her first cup of coffee and was starting a second.

 _Correct location?_  Something about those words filled Akira with anxiety.

Akira’s phone buzzed in his pocket, and a sudden silence fell upon them as Akira took out his phone.

He went into his text messages and almost fell out of his stool when he read the message:

**[Ryuji] I wouldn’t have been bothered if you just turned me down, but seriously? You thought it would be funny to just set me up like this? Hope you had fun, you fucking bastard.**

It felt like pins and needles were piercing Akira’s skin as he typed back, hands trembling.

**[Akira] What do you mean?**

**[Ryuji] You know exactly what I mean! I went to your store and there’s no one there!**

What? Why had he gone back to the store? He was halfway through typing about how he was already at Café Leblanc, the place they were supposed to meet at, when dread stabbed through him like a knife.

Shit, he never told Ryuji where he was supposed to go! He dropped his phone onto the table where it fell with a dull clatter.

“You alright Akira? You’re shaking like a leaf. What did the message say?” asked Sojiro.

“I…I messed up.”

“You what?”

“I didn’t tell him where we were supposed to meet.”

Sojiro stared at him in disbelief.

“You’re kidding, right? How did you forget something that important?” exclaimed Futaba as she leaned over to read the text message.

Akira groaned and slammed his head next to his phone on the coffee counter.

He had reached the end of the line. Ryuji now hated his guts and most likely never wanted to see him again. He felt like screaming, but at the same time he didn’t want the others to see him completely break down.

“W-well, it’s only a misunderstanding! Don’t worry Akira, just tell him where you are right now and have him come over!” assured Makoto as she placed a hand on Akira’s shoulder in an attempt to console him.

“He’s going to think that I’m still messing with him if I tell him now. It’s no use; he definitely hates me.” moaned Akira, his voice muffled by the counter.

“Hey, cheer up! You don’t know if he  _definitely_ hates you.” responded Futaba as she grabbed Akira’s open phone and read through the messages. “Hmm, I gotta say though; what’s up with these pithy messages? It’s almost like you were trying to make a character for yourself.” She looked back at a defeated Akira. “Don’t tell me you were trying to pass off as the cool and mysterious type to him.” Akira didn’t respond, but his ears were flushed red underneath the curls of his black hair. Futaba burst out into laughter, shaking her head.

“Futaba, now’s not the time to laugh.” scolded Makoto.

“I’m sorry, but just— _pfft—_ oh man! Akira that’s hilarious! No wonder he didn’t know where to meet up with you giving him such vague info! You were destroyed by your own facade.” giggled Futaba. “Still, if this dude shook you up so much that you even forgot how to use words around him, I’ll help out. The guy doesn’t seem to be the brightest either since he didn’t ask for any specifics on location.”

Futaba turned away from the others and held out the phone at an arm’s length, the phone’s camera reflecting their images on the screen.

“What are you doing?” blustered Makoto as she held up her hands to cover her face from the camera; the camera snapped a photo with an audible click, capturing Makoto’s indignant pose, Sojiro staring disapprovingly at the camera, Akira’s head lying on the table, and Futaba’s mischievous grin. Futaba retracted the phone and began to type. About a minute of tapping on the screen and Futaba turned to face them again, triumphant.

“Aaaand done! He’ll probably listen now.”

Akira slowly pushed himself back up. He took the phone from Futaba and looked at the screen. Cold shock immediately replaced his sense of hopelessness. “What the hell did you just send?”

In the messages was now the photo Futaba had taken, and…

**[Akira] Hey scrub, I know you’re pissed off right now but just remember that it’s also your fault for not asking where to meet beforehand. Anyways, your date’s over here moping because you’re mad at him. It’s making the rest of us uncomfortable so hurry up and get over here to cheer him up.**

Beneath that was a GPS link to Café Leblanc’s location.

“Goodness, what did you send him Futaba?” asked Makoto as she plucked the phone from Akira’s grasp. She read the message and shook her head. “That’s way too blunt, Futaba. If you’re going to send a message, it must have more taste to it.” she tapped a message of her own before sending it and handing the phone back to Akira. “There, I think this should be an improvement.”

Akira read the message:

**[Akira] I apologize for my friend’s rudeness, but I implore you to come over at once. Akira has been single for a very long time and some long-term company aside from his cat would be ideal for him. I feel like he must be rather lonely and a romantic interest may allow him to grow as a person. I hope you’re willing to overlook this unfortunate misunderstanding for the sake of Akira’s emotional health. Please, arrive as soon as you can.**

“What exactly is tasteful about this message?” asked Akira exasperatedly. “If anything, it makes me seem extremely desperate for a boyfriend, something I’m not even looking for!” The heavy sense of dread in his stomach continued to grow.

Sojiro clicked his tongue at them. “Honestly, youngsters these days don’t even know how to sway someone over. Why, when I was your age…never mind. Here, let me show you how it’s done.”

Sojiro took Akira’s phone (Akira didn’t understand why he kept letting them take his phone) and typed in another message. He proudly gave the phone back to Akira. “There you go, that’s sure to win someone over.”

Akira nervously looked down at the screen, fearful of what he might see:

 **[Akira]**   **Darling, I know you’re mad at me, so I’ll pay for the food if you come over. I promise to never hurt you again and will always stay by your side, my one and only.**

He could feel the life draining out of him.

“Ehhh? Sojiro that’s coming on way too strong! This is only their first date!” criticized Futaba while she read the message over Akira’s shoulder.

“It certainly might scare this ‘Ryuji’ person away after receiving such a passionate response.” agreed Makoto.

“Really? This usually worked whenever I used it.”

“Your style is too old-fashioned! Besides, it should be more like…”

Their bickering faded into the background; Akira stared blankly at the phone screen, contemplating if life had any meaning to it anymore when the phone buzzed again and a message popped up. The sounds of arguing immediately ceased as Akira read the message:

**[Ryuji] Sure…omw then.**

He read the message over and over again, not quite fully processing the words. He couldn’t believe it. Did this mean he still had a chance?

“Well, what did he say?” demanded Futaba.

“He says he’s coming over.”

“That’s great news! Now you have less to worry about.” beamed Makoto.

“I’m… not so sure about that.” sighed Akira dejectedly. Those messages were definitely going to make Ryuji think he wasn’t right in the head.

“Jeez, and I was hoping I could close up on time today.” huffed Sojiro. “Can’t be helped, I suppose. Don’t worry about how late it gets. You can stay for as long as you need to.”

“Thank you Sojiro.” murmured Akira. There was only a small glimmer of hope in an otherwise bleak situation, and yet there was this unshakable feeling of elation lifting him back up.

Maybe things could still turn out alright.

* * *

 

The door finally swung open around 8:30.

Ryuji loomed in the doorway with, admittedly, a frightening expression on his face. He was wearing a red T-shirt and black jeans that were rolled an inch above his white sneakers; the bandage was gone and revealed a smooth, pale streak on his cheek. Futaba had moved seats to sit beside Makoto, and she peeked out from behind the other woman, clinging onto the sleeve of Makoto’s police uniform; Akira wanted to dive behind Makoto himself, but he instead stood his ground and tried not to gulp at the way Ryuji was glaring daggers at him.

Sojiro cleared his throat. “Um, welcome.”

“Hey,” growled Ryuji.

Akira began to speak; “Sakamoto-san, about today, I really am sorry. It was incredibly foolish of me to not give you a location, and-“

“Dude, chill. I’ve already gotten over it. Figured you didn’t mean any real harm after all those…weird messages I got.” muttered Ryuji. His expression softened into a more rueful countenance. “So, now that the misunderstanding is behind us, wanna get started with the…um, this?”

Akira could hardly believe his ears. Ryuji wasn’t going to chew him out?

 “A-absolutely.” he replied.

“Well, have a seat if you two are ready to start.” stated Sojiro as he took the empty coffee cup from Makoto. The police officer stood up from her seat afterwards.

 “I think it’s about time I head out again. Can’t break away from duty for too long. Let’s go, Futaba.”

“What? But I wanna stay and—”     Makoto whispered something into Futaba’s ear. “Alright, fine. But only because you asked me to.”  She turned and winked at Akira. “Have fun, you two.” Makoto paid at the register and the two women left the cafe, leaving only Akira, Ryuji, and Sojiro.

"So, um," Akira started after they left. "You wanna go ahead and sit down?"

"Sure."

Ryuji plopped himself into one of the booths, and Akira took a seat across from him.

An uncomfortable silence hung in the air as they waited for their food. Ryuji was shaking his leg, sending small tremors through the booth’s table, and Akira’s mind was frantically sifting through various topics he could start a conversation with.

“So,” Akira began. “How was your day?”

 Wonderful. What a perfectly bland and generic way to start a conversation.

“Fine, I guess. It was mostly just training again.” replied Ryuji, avoiding eye contact with him.

“Training?”

“Hm? Oh yeah, we don’t really know each other that well yet.”  Ryuji finally turned to look at Akira. “Well, I’m something of a professional sprinter. I usually prepare for races that set me up for being a pro athlete.”

“So, an Olympic sprinter?”  Akira had partially meant that to be a joke.

“Yup.” replied Ryuji casually. “If I keep going a bit longer I’ll supposedly have a good shot at getting gold too.”

What. Akira’s jaw almost dropped.

He had never been interested in sporting events, but now he couldn’t help but silently curse himself for his ignorance. Damn. Talk about impressive. How many times had Ryuji appeared on television before he had met him? How many people would be able to recognize him as that one sprinter from the Olympics just by looking at him? Akira felt incredibly underwhelming now that Ryuji shared his career with him. Here he was, the florist of a small localized shop, sitting across from someone who was well on his way to running in an international competition. He kept his face in as neutral as possible to hide his dismay.

“That’s…very impressive. You must be extremely talented then.”

Ryuji smiled mournfully at him.

“Thanks, but it was mostly hard work keeping me afloat.” his leg had stopped shaking.

 “I joined the track team when I was in high school and trained every day in order to get an athletic scholarship, and after that I practically ran myself to death in college trying to get good enough.” Ryuji ran his fingers through his hair. “An incident in college stopped me from running for a while, too, so I guess you could say that me even getting recruited was just a huge stroke of luck.” bitterness seeped through Ryuji’s words at the end, as if talking about his college years had caused some unpleasant memories to resurface. “Yeah, so I guess you could say there’s not much to me in the end.” he laughed uneasily.

Discussing his past clearly made Ryuji uncomfortable, and even though Akira didn’t want to pry any further, he couldn’t help but become bothered at the way Ryuji spoke so negatively about himself. He hesitated, choosing his words carefully before speaking.

 “Why are you selling yourself short?”

“Huh?”

“Sorry, maybe I’m out of line to say this, but I find the fact that you were able to stay so dedicated amazing. Being able to push your limits for such a long time is impressive in itself, and it’s not something just anybody can do. So,” Akira self-consciously swept a loose strand of hair out of his face. “Please don’t make something so incredible sound like it’s nothing at all.”

A blush crept onto Ryuji’s face as he stared at Akira, dumbfounded. “O-Oh,” he stuttered. “Sorry then. I’ll try not to anymore.”

He chuckled, and that bashful grin of his caused Akira’s heart to skip a beat. “Honestly though, I think that’s the first time I’ve heard someone call my lack of talent amazing or impressive. Thanks, man.” He rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. “This might be weird to say since we’ve only known each other for a short while, but I’m really glad I got to see you again today.”

Akira’s heart was beating at an abnormal pace in his chest. “Me too.”

Sojiro walked out from behind the counter. “Ahem, not to ruin the mood, but your food’s ready.” he placed two plates of curry in front of them.

“Damn, that smell’s awesome!” exclaimed Ryuji, his enthusiasm seeming to suddenly reawaken at the scent. He scooped up a large portion with the spoon and took a bite. “Taste’s effin awesome too! Jeezus Akira you weren’t kidding!” he mumbled through a mouthful of rice and curry.

_He called me Akira._

“Told you it was good.” he remarked. Sojiro definitely seemed happier from Ryuji’s compliment as he walked away.

Ryuji swallowed down the food. “So, now that you know more about me, what about you? I know you run a flower shop, but I wanna know more about you than just that. Got any hobbies or stuff I should know about?” questioned Ryuji before wolfing down more of the curry.

Akira tried not to snort at how eagerly Ryuji was devouring his meal. “Well…”

They chatted the evening away, the conversation carrying on almost perfectly as they laughed at each other’s jokes and proceeded to learn more about each other; they cheerfully discussed the things they both happened to like along with ranting about the things that they didn’t. Sojiro was sitting at the counter reading a book after he had cleared away their empty plates, but an amused smirk on his face gave away that he was also listening in on the conversation. Time passed all-too quickly, and when Akira looked down at his watch it was a little past midnight.

“It’s gotten pretty late.” broached Akira, reluctant to cut their conversation off.

“Damn, you’re right.” sighed Ryuji. He slowly stood up from the booth and Akira followed suit. “We should probably get going then.” Ryuji turned to Sojiro. “Thanks for the food.” he reached for his wallet when Sojiro held up his hand.

 “No need for that. Akira here said he was going to pay for it after all.” Sojiro winked slyly at Akira.

“Wait, you weren’t kidding about that?” asked Ryuji, surprised.

“I…” Akira sighed and shook his head. “No, I wasn’t.” Oh well. It was the least he could do for misleading the blond earlier.

“Oh, um, thanks.” the warm expression on Ryuji’s face definitely made spending any amount of money seem worth it.

Akira paid for their meals at the register (for whatever reason, Sojiro only asked for the payment of one meal, unbeknownst to Ryuji), and the two gave their farewells to the café owner before leaving together.

Despite being night-time, the city was alive and bustling. The chattering of pedestrians blurred together with the noise of traffic to form a white noise, and the stars and moon shone dully in comparison to the bright glow of the city. Akira and Ryuji walked down the streets, side by side and not saying a word to each other, and even though Akira’s mind was urging him to tell the other man what he wanted to say, he couldn’t bring himself to ask the question he had out loud in fear of the other man turning him down.

They continued to walk until they reached the subway station and stopped at the entrance.

“Well, I guess this is goodbye for now.” Ryuji patted Akira on the back, jolts of electricity shooting through the other man at the contact. “Today was the most fun I’ve had in a while, man. Let’s meet up again soon!”

How soon was soon going to be though?

Akira wasn’t quite ready for Ryuji to walk away from him yet. He knew he was being unreasonable: it was already late, they both had their own work to deal with later and they weren’t even close friends yet, but if they could only stay together for just a bit longer, just a few more hours…

To hell with it. Might as well ask now.

“Actually, Sakamoto-san.” Akira piped up. He carefully grasped onto the blond’s wrist, relieved that the other man didn’t shy away from his touch. “I was wondering. Since it’s gotten so late and, um, it would be a hassle to, er, ride the subway all the way back to where you live since from what you’ve told me I know your home is farther away, you could, if you need to, that is, s-spend… the night. With. Me?” He forced the last few words out. “Of course, I-I mean that you can sleep in my apartment so you don’t have to make the trip all the way back to your own place.”

 Ryuji blinked at him, his wrist hanging limply in Akira’s hand. “O-oh. Well, um, well then. That’s uh, very nice of you to suggest that. If that’s an offer you’re putting on the table then, um, I guess I shouldn’t turn you down then!” replied Ryuji shakily. “I’d, I’d be stoked to go to your place. Y-y’know, for the sake of saving time.”

“Right! So,” he gently tugged Ryuji along by the wrist as he started to walk towards the station again. “We should, um, we should get going then! Can’t lose any more sleep!”

“S-sure!” replied the blond as he trailed behind him.

He let go of Ryuji (albeit reluctantly) after they stepped into the station, not wanting to embarrass the other man. They boarded the subway back, and when they arrived at Akira’s apartment Akira hesitated for a moment before unlocking the door. “You’re not allergic to cats, are you?”

“Cats? Nah. Can’t say I’m too big a fan of them though.”

“I see.” Akira prayed that Morgana hadn’t made any messes while he was away.

He pushed open the door to see familiar blue eyes glinting at him from the darkness. “Make yourself comfortable.” He informed Ryuji while he took off his shoes and turned on the lights.

Morgana strolled up to him and curled around his legs, purring as he rubbed his head against his jeans. “Hello, Morgana.” He reached down and lightly scratched the critter behind the ears. “I brought someone with me today.” The cat turned away from him and stared at Ryuji.

“Hi…” greeted Ryuji, crouching down and extending his hand for the cat to sniff it.

The cat cautiously approached him, took one sniff at his hand, and suddenly leapt back, the fur on its back raised as he hissed at him.

“Morgana!” scolded Akira as he swept up the spitting cat into his arms. “Sorry, he’s usually not like this around other people. I’ll put him in a different room.”

“Nah, it’s fine. Can’t expect everyone, or, everycat, to like me.” grunted Ryuji while he scuffed his shoes off and inspected the room.

 The apartment itself was rather airy. An open kitchen connected to the room they were standing in, which held a sofa, a coffee table, a small TV, and a tall bookshelf. On the opposite side of the room a hallway held two separate doors that lead to the bathroom and Akira’s bedroom.

“So, I was thinking you could sleep in my bed and I could sleep on the couch.”  _Or we could share the bed._

“No need for that. I’ll be fine with the couch. Mind if I use the bathroom first?”

“Sure.”

While Ryuji was occupied Akira slipped into his bedroom to grab a spare blanket for the blond, and Morgana meowed in protest and squirmed out of his grasp before leaping out of the room.

Nothing would’ve prepared Akira for what he was going to see when he returned to the hallway.

Ryuji came out of the bathroom, hand covering his mouth during a yawn while the cat sauntered past him, and-

Akira’s jaw dropped.

The blond had removed his shirt, the offending article of clothing tucked under his arm. Akira gaped at him and glimpsed down at the other’s toned form before immediately snapping his gaze back up the other’s face, trying his damnedest not to stare down at how Ryuji’s lean build slightly curved at his hips, or how the green hem and pink fabric of his boxers were peeking out almost teasingly above the waist of his pants. He fervently hoped that his face wasn’t red as he quivered, the blanket in his arms trembling from the movement.

Ryuji stared at him questioningly. “Hm? What’s wrong Kurusu-san?”

It was as if his brain had short-circuited, and no sound came out at first when he opened his mouth.

“N-nothing! Nothing’s wrong! Nothing at all! Everything’s perfectly fine! I, uh, got you a blanket to use.” he stammered as he shoved the blanket into Ryuji’s arms.

“Um, okay, tha-”

Akira retreated into the darkness of his bedroom. “Well, today was lovely, Sakamoto-san, but I think I’m going to go to sleep now! I just suddenly feel overwhelmed with fatigue! Goodnight!” He slammed the door before Ryuji could respond.

“Er, alright. G'night Akira.” said Ryuji, his voice muffled by the door.

After he heard the other man shuffle away and click the lights off, Akira collapsed onto the bed, the mattress sagging underneath his weight. Damn it. That was definitely impolite, but he couldn’t just head back out and apologize, especially given the situation at hand:

Why oh why did he have to get an erection now?

 He sat up and propped his back against the wall. The front of his pants was uncomfortably tight, so he kicked the restraining garment off onto the floor.

He felt ashamed, popping a damn boner in front of the other man; thankfully it didn’t seem like Ryuji had noticed, but humiliation still burned through Akira as he thought back to his embarrassing reaction at the other’s half-nude body.

 His cock was standing at full mast, the fabric of his boxers tenting over it. Akira palmed the length, trying to relieve some of his tension, and before he knew it he was sliding the boxers down and slipping into his imagination.

He bit his lip and gave his cock a few slow strokes. No turning back now, might as well go all the way. Akira allowed his mind to run free.

God, what would Ryuji be like in bed?

His toned figure was still stuck in Akira’s thoughts, and he wondered about how those firm muscles would feel pressed flush against him. Akira would pin him onto the bed, the other man allowing him to overwhelm him despite definitely being the stronger one, and he’d start making marks all over Ryuji’s neck and chest, unrelenting no matter how much the blond writhed beneath him as he sucked at his delicate skin. Fuck, he began to stroke himself a little faster. Akira would trail down, sucking at his nipples while sliding his hands roughly down the sides of Ryuji’s chest, and Ryuji would just moan and arch up into the intimate contact.

“You’re already so hard.” Akira would murmur as he traced a finger over the tip of Ryuji’s aching cock, swiping his tongue across his lips. He’d take the shaft into his palm and start stroking, the callouses on his hand creating an almost unbearable friction against the sensitive flesh, and Ryuji would just cry out and beg for more as he leaked into his grasp.

“Are you sure you can take more?”  Akira would ask, teasing him as he took his other hand and brushed his fingers against Ryuji’s entrance.

 “Yes, _yes, please, more._ ” he could almost hear Ryuji’s voice beg.

At this point Akira brought his other hand to his mouth and placed two fingers in, coating them with saliva. He brought the fingers down to his entrance and pushed in just as he did to the Ryuji pleading with him in his mind.

He pumped his fingers in and out, curling them against his prostrate while he firmly stroked his cock, and he bit down harder to stifle his moans at the jolts of pleasure spiking through him in order not to alert the real Ryuji about what he was doing.

Akira would slam his fingers back into him again and again, and just when Ryuji was on the verge of tipping over he’d withdraw his fingers, leaving the other desperate and causing him to whine needily for completion.

“Don’t worry, I’m not done with you yet.” He’d feel the head of his cock bumping against the blond, and Akira allowed a sob to escape from him as he imagined himself penetrating deep into the other man, frantically fucking himself on his fingers while precum leaked steadily down his shaft.

Akira would fuck him senseless, trying to cause Ryuji to go nearly delirious from pleasure. Cum would trail out sloppily from his abused hole and Akira would just keep Ryuji’s legs forced open and continue to pound away at his prostrate even though the other would quickly become overstimulated as he leaned in for a kiss while jerking him off with one hand and-

Akira whimpered, shivering in ecstasy while his orgasm overwhelmed him in crashing waves. His load dripped sluggishly out of his hand, and the shame that plagued him earlier returned when the afterglow left him.

He couldn’t even restrain his urges when someone else was staying at his apartment, even worse that he had fantasized about having sex with said someone. What would Ryuji think if he ever found out? The thought of his complete disgust at him made the feeling of guilt grow worse. Akira removed his fingers and wiped the mess he made onto his shirt before taking it off, not wanting to go out to use the bathroom in fear of disturbing the other man.

He pulled up his boxers and slumped back on the bed, laying still. Akira eventually could make out the sound of Morgana’s paws padding against the wooden floor and Ryuji’s snoring beyond the door, and in the quiet atmosphere he distantly wondered if Ryuji ever had lewd thoughts about someone as he just did, if he had ever flashed into Ryuji’s mind as being potentially something more intimate than a friend. Akira removed his glasses, placed them aside, and closed his eyes.

 He was being ridiculous, getting so worked up over a single fantasy. Ryuji had simply surprised him, and after being presented with such an exquisite figure it could only be natural that the blond came up in his imagination while he was rubbing one out. It certainly wasn’t because he considered him as anything more than a confidant. Even if he did, trying to push the relationship any further risked destroying the bond they already had, and Akira wasn’t going to take any chances.

The way things were now was already fine, and Akira convinced himself that he couldn’t ask for a better scenario with Ryuji, ignoring the doubt still gnawing at him, before drifting off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaand that's the end of chapter 3! Thank you guys so much for reading to the end!


	4. How Frugal is the Chariot that Bears the Human Soul

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Hi guys! I'm so sorry for the long hiatus! College has been keeping me busy ;-;  
> Anyways, without further ado, here's chapter 4! Hope you guys like it!)

Akira woke to the sound of frantic mewing and claws scratching impatiently against his bedroom door. He groaned, reluctantly opening his eyes before slowly turning himself over to squint at the red numbers of his alarm clock glaring out at him from the darkness. Akira sighed heavily when he registered what ungodly hour it was and dragged himself out from under the sheets. “Jeez, Morgana,” he grumbled, rubbing his eyes as he hauled himself out of the bed; he trudged over to the door while the meowing continued insistently.  _A few more hours of sleep would’ve been nice_  Akira thought resentfully as he twisted the door knob.

It was unusual for the cat to disturb him this late; normally he was content with roaming around in the halls or napping in Akira’s bed throughout the entirety of the night. Akira probably should’ve felt more concerned about Morgana’s odd behavior, but in his drowsy state he honestly couldn’t bring himself to care.

As soon as he opened the door Morgana rushed in. clambering over the side of the bed frame before settling onto the mattress. Akira glared at the feline; “Dumb cat,” he muttered before breaking into a yawn. Hopefully Morgana wasn’t going to bother him anymore, but now that he was up he might as well use the bathroom before going back to sleep.

Akira finished his business, and after he left the bathroom an unfamiliar faint noise caused alarm to register through his sleep-addled mind. He tensed before recollection of the night’s events caused him to relax again.

Oh yeah. Ryuji was staying over with him tonight.

Listening more closely to the noise, it certainly sounded like Ryuji’s voice, but why was he up so late? And more importantly, who was he talking to?

_Maybe a significant other?_

The possibility suddenly shot through his thoughts and caused a bitter feeling to rise in his chest.

No. There wasn’t any need to feel the way he did; it didn’t concern him that Ryuji possibly had a lover that he enjoyed talking with late at night. It  _shouldn’t_ concern him.

Right?

Perhaps he should just respect the other man’s privacy and carry on like he hadn’t heard anything, but curiosity got the better of Akira, and he cautiously crept out of the hallway into the room Ryuji was staying in.

Moonlight filtered in through the windows, so thankfully the room wasn’t completely dark. In the dim lighting Akira could make out the blurry outline of the couch (not having his glasses on definitely wasn’t helping his eyesight) and a figure lying across the cushions. It didn’t seem like Ryuji was awake at all, but the murmurs and sighs were definitely coming from him.

So Ryuji talks in his sleep; for whatever strange reason, Akira oddly found the quirk rather adorable.

Akira dared to scoot in a little closer, and as he did Ryuji’s voice grew more intelligible; he could almost make out what sounded like words;

“mm… ah… Ann… Ann...”

The bitter feeling from earlier returned. Was Ryuji calling out to someone? Who was Ann?

A small moan left Ryuji’s mouth, and Akira watched as Ryuji fidgeted underneath the blanket.

_Probably his girlfriend…_

Akira felt disgusted with himself; here he was probably prying into someone else’s wet dream like a creep. What the hell was he doing? He shouldn’t have tried to snoop.

He turned to leave when a small sob caused him to freeze in his tracks. Akira stood there silently.

Another sniffle, followed by a weak whimper.

Was Ryuji… crying?

Akira leaned forward until he was hovering a few feet above the other man’s face. His eyes had adjusted to the dimness of the room, and sure enough, he could make out the outline of tears trailing down the blond’s cheeks.

“Ann…Ann…” the blond continued to groan out the name almost pitifully, and Akira watched Ryuji toss his head from side to side, the groans increasing in volume.

Ryuji definitely wasn’t having a pleasant dream, and Akira considered waking him, but he couldn’t think of a decent explanation as to why he happened to be standing over Ryuji and watching him sleep. The other man would be suspicious of his intentions, and he couldn’t see any positive outcomes for the scenario in which he did wake Ryuji. Still, something about just leaving the blond like this didn’t settle right.

Maybe it was the aching pang of emotion he felt seeing Ryuji in distress, maybe it was the overwhelmingly strong urge to wipe the tears away from his face, but to just stand by and watch while Ryuji was clearly suffering…

Akira couldn’t stand it.

“Ryuji,” he murmured, lightly grasping onto the man’s shoulder; Ryuji’s bare skin felt cold and clammy to the touch, and Akira gently shook him, hoping that he didn’t scare him awake on accident.

Ryuji let out another groan and began to stir from his sleep; his eyes slowly fluttered open as he regained consciousness, gaze fixing upon Akira in weary confusion.

“Hm..? Wha… Akira?”

“Erm, sorry to wake you, it’s just…well…” Shit. How was he supposed to explain this? “You were sort of, um, talking in your sleep.”

Ryuji stared vacantly at him.

“I was?”

“Yeah. And you were also...” Should he just say it up-front? “Kind of crying too.”

That seemed to startle Ryuji awake. The blond’s eyes widened as he flung the blanket off, raised himself into a sitting position, and brought a hand to his cheek; he turned away from Akira as he confirmed the presence of tears, shielding his face from view.

“Damn it, again?!” Ryuji cursed, hastily wiping at his face with his arm. Even after he finished he kept himself turned away from Akira, refusing to look Akira in the eye, and an awkward silence settled in the air as Akira stood there, unsure of what to do or say.

Finally, Akira decided to edge closer towards the sofa, unnoticed by Ryuji who was still staring resolutely at the wall.

“Mind if I sit here?” he asked.

There was a long pause as he waited for Ryuji to answer.

“…Sure, I won’t stop you.” grunted Ryuji; he swung his legs off of the couch to make room for Akira, eyes taking a sudden interest in the floor since he had to tear his gaze away from the wall in order to move; it was at least a little better since Akira could now see his face.

Akira carefully placed himself next to Ryuji, and the two men sat together in the same silence that had first grasped their meeting at the cafe. He cleared his throat, trying to think of something to say that would lessen the near suffocating tension between them; Akira thought about asking him who Ann was, but decided it was probably for the best that he didn’t bring it up and allow Ryuji to talk about what he actually felt comfortable in sharing.

“So,” he began. “Is this, do you wanna, talk about it?”

Ryuji let out a heavy sigh that gnawed at Akira’s heart. “Nah, it’s fine, don’t worry about it man. I’ve just had a lot on my plate lately.” Ryuji lifted his head up, still not looking him in the eye.

“Do you think you’d feel better if you vented?” if Akira could just do something,  _anything_ , that would help that sad expression on Ryuji’s face leave.

The corner of Ryuji’s mouth lifted up into a small smile, but there was no warmth behind it.

 “Probably not. It’s nothing, really. The talking in my sleep n’ shit is just something that happens to me every once in a while. Sorry to make you worry.”

_Liar._

Akira knew Ryuji wasn’t telling the truth, and it stung a little to know that Ryuji didn’t trust him. Not that he could really blame him, since they’ve only known each other for a short while.

Still, maybe one day they could get to that point.

The sad look that still lingered on Ryuji’s face was unbearable, and Akira found himself hesitantly reaching towards the other man. He just wanted to… wanted to pull him in, hold him close, tell him that everything would turn out alright and that he’d stay by him to help him get through whatever shitty issues came his way…

Instead, he settled with his hand weakly grasping onto the blond’s shoulder again.

Ryuji seemed to whither underneath his touch. “W-what?” the other man spluttered, his expression turning flustered (at least he didn’t look unhappy anymore) as he finally turned to look at Akira.

“It’s fine if you don’t wanna talk about it, but just know that… I’m here for you if you ever need anything.” Akira mumbled, painfully aware of how sweaty his palm was becoming as it continued to remain latched onto Ryuji.

 Ryuji stared at him for a moment, dumbfounded, before a more sincere smile began to spread across his face.

“Heh, thanks! And the same goes for you too, man!”

Akira could feel his face burning as he slipped his hand off of the other man’s shoulder; what kind of power did Ryuji possess that caused him to feel so weak just from seeing him smile?

“Thank you.”

He stood up to leave.

“Well… it’s still dark. I’m going to go back to sleep. Goodnight, Ryuji.”

“Yeah, goodnight, Akira.”

Akira noticed that Ryuji was watching him return to his bedroom and suddenly felt lightheaded.

When he settled himself back into bed, Morgana waiting expectantly for him, Akira realized that Ryuji never questioned why he had been watching over him.

* * *

 

Inside the Velvet Room Floral a young man toiled with an arrangement of potted flowers. Brows furrowed in concentration, the man carefully observed each subject, muttering to himself as he turned a pot at a slightly different angle or moved it to a different spot on the table. He labored over the arrangement for what seemed like an excruciatingly long time, pots being frantically shifted and turned about, until finally the man straightened himself up and stepped away from the table to admire his work with a content smile, a wisp of blue hair falling into his eyes from the motion.

“Ah, such a pleasing image.” sighed the man as he tucked the loose strand away. “At long last, a setup that fully expresses the beauty of the flowers. A most wonderful accomplishment indeed.”

Behind the counter, Akira sighed in exasperation. “Honestly, Yusuke, I think the first way you arranged them looked just fine. I don’t see why you needed to put in all that extra effort.”

Yusuke looked at him with an offended expression on his face. “Nonsense! Crafting an aesthetic into its fullest potential is a must! It would be a grave injustice to have simply left these flowers in such a mediocre state while the option of attaining their true beauty was never touched upon.”

“Well, whatever makes you happy, I suppose.” replied Akira as he absentmindedly drummed his fingers on the counter.

Yusuke was an interesting character, to say the least. The artist’s studio was in the same city as Akira’s flower shop, and like Haru he had come to work as a part-timer in addition to his actual profession. When Yusuke had first come to his shop to request a job, claiming something about how being around "a myriad of naturally-created aesthetics" was good for inspiration (and that earning a little extra money for food expenses would be helpful), Akira was a bit reluctant to hire him. In fact, he had almost kicked Yusuke out on his first day when he discovered that the man had completely rearranged the color scheme of the bouquets from what they were supposed to be, the flowers bunched together with no conformity to their traditional displays. However, when the bouquets that particular day also sold twice as quickly than they usually did, Akira realized that the artist understood much more about visual appeal than he ever would.

Looking back, Akira was glad that he hadn’t fired him; along with being a hard worker, Yusuke had also became an excellent friend, and he enjoyed the eccentric artist’s company and talking with him about topics regarding art or food or other things.

“On the subject of happiness,” remarked Yusuke while he made a rectangle with his index fingers and thumbs to observe the arrangement with. “Haru informed me that you had found a potential love interest while working, and Futaba had overwhelmed my cellphone with messages regarding your rendezvous with him the prior evening to this day. Did you find him someone who would be suitable as a spouse?”

“W-what? No!” protested Akira, his face heating up.  _What else had Futaba told him?_  

Thankfully it didn't seem as if anyone had found out about Ryuji spending the night with him though. When he woke up that morning Ryuji had already left, the blanket folded neatly on the couch and the strong scent of coffee suffusing through the room. A text from him told Akira that the sprinter had left early for practice, but not before making a batch of coffee for Akira ( **I wasn't sure how much powder to use, hope you don't mind!** ). Akira had sat at the table feeling strangely cheerful as he sipped the overly strong coffee.

“So I take it the date didn’t go well then?” inquired Yusuke as he circled around the arrangement.

“N-no! It just wasn’t a date to begin with!” Akira continued to protest. Why were his friends so insistent on this?!

“Hm, I see. Perhaps I was misled then.” Yusuke turned to smile gently at Akira. “However, if you ever do find the ideal companion, I will wholeheartedly support-”

Yusuke was cut off by the sound of the bell tinkling.

“Welcome.” greeted Yusuke courteously.

“Hello,” was the greeting chirped back.

Something about the man standing in the doorway viscerally made Akira want to punch him in the face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Oh, dear oh dear what are feelings???? Anyways, I'm going to try to update as soon as I can, but thank you for being patient with me! Also, the chapter title is a line from an Emily Dickinson poem.)


	5. Platitude and Gratitude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (H...Hey guuuyys :'D  
> *promises to update as soon as possible*  
> *delivers new chapter two months later*  
> I'm really sorry about the delay, school is just super stressful rn, but my love for these boys is fueling me to push through!  
> Hope you guys enjoy the new chapter!)

Something about the man standing in the doorway set Akira’s teeth on edge.

Judging from appearances he couldn’t have been older than forty, and his physique was that of an athlete who was out of his prime, but there was something else underlying the image of the man before him that felt horribly off; the boiling displeasure in his gut that Akira hadn’t felt since his college years caused the florist to instinctively feel a sort of aversion, perhaps even hostility, to the newcomer, and Akira had to clench his jaw in order to maintain a straight face.

He had never seen this man before in his life, so it wasn’t that Akira recognized him as someone who deserved his scorn, and yet some sort of unsavory quality seemed to exude from the man before him that almost made the florist want to gag.

The stranger walked in with an easy smile on his face, a greasy air of confidence practically oozing out from him with each step.

“Ooh, what a nice little shop we have here,” remarked the man. He paused and glanced around at his surroundings in almost the same fashion Ryuji had when the blond first entered; the newcomer’s presence caught the attention of a few other customers, and Akira could distinguish what they were saying from their hushed whispers:

“Hey, look over there. Isn’t that Suguru Kamoshida?”

“Who?”

“You know, the coach of  the women’s volleyball team for the Olympics! He was a pretty famous player himself back in the day too.”

“Don’t know, don’t care. I don’t keep track of sports.”

“That’s a shame. Actually, my friend swore she saw Ryuji Sakamoto in here as well—”

Akira’s attention was diverted back to the man apparently named Kamoshida when he advanced towards the flower arrangement Yusuke had been laboring over.

“Impressive,” he stated, causing Yusuke to give a gracious bow in return.

“Thank you. It pleases me to know that you think so.”

Kamoshida continued to smile; he picked up one of the potted amaryllis flowers and inspected it. “They’re certainly lovely; a shame it’s not what I came here for though.” he placed the pot back down, the position and angle askew from what it originally was; a subtle grimace flitted across Yusuke’s face when he noticed the change.

The volleyball coach turned to Akira. “Excuse me, but what banquets do you have available? I want to give something that feels special.”

“Well, I could show you what we have…” replied Akira, trying his best to stare straight at the older man without thinking of how much he wanted him to leave and never come back.

“Is there any need for that? You’re an experienced florist, aren’t you, surely you could pick a suitable one out for me instead?” questioned Kamoshida. When Akira didn’t respond he coughed under the pretense of clearing his throat. “A joke,” he added, chuckling as if to give proof that what he said had been in good humor. “Show me the way, I’ll pick one out.” his voice was friendly, but Akira could still pick out the condescension dripping from his tone.

Who the hell did he think he was?

Akira had Yusuke direct Kamoshida to the display of bouquets, and a few minutes later the two returned with the older man clutching a posy of burgundy and pink roses.

“These will do.”

As Akira wrapped up the arrangement Kamoshida continued to talk, much to the florist’s annoyance.

“It was lucky for me to find a shop like this here of all places. Can’t say I was expecting to find much in this area of the city.”

“Well, it gets by,” replied Akira, responding for the sake of courtesy more than anything else.

“Of course. I’m sure you must be especially popular with the ladies seeing as they eat this sort of stuff right up.” he laughed, and Akira kept a calm demeanor despite his growing irritation. The florist didn’t respond again, and Kamoshida stopped laughing once he saw how disinterested he was. “Tough crowd,” he muttered.

He stopped trying to make conversation after that.

Once Akira was done Kamoshida paid for the flowers and strolled towards the door while the florist gave his customary send-off. Right before exiting the volleyball coach stopped and looked at him: “It’s a nice place you got here, so I’ll be sure to spread the word around for it.” he smiled. “Don’t be afraid to lighten up though. You’re bound to get more popular if you do.” he opened the door and stepped through the doorway. “Have a nice day.” and with that, he was gone.

When Kamoshida left Akira let an audible sigh of relief escape from his lips. He turned to Yusuke and saw that his expression of unhappiness mirrored his own.

“If I may be frank, I found that customer to be rather… unpleasant, despite his attempts at geniality.” confessed Yusuke.

Akira nodded his head in agreement; that was one person he didn’t want to see anytime soon.

Still, it surprised him to discover that there was someone else so majorly involved in sports besides Ryuji staying in the region. He wondered how many others like the volleyball coach and pro sprinter were also here.

* * *

 

The day continued on without any further disturbances until it was eventually time to close up, and once Yusuke and Akira were outside the two of them exchanged cordial farewells before proceeding to walk away in opposite directions. Several minutes into his trek across the city  Akira felt his cellphone vibrate. He pulled out the phone from his pocket out and saw that Ryuji had sent him a message:

**Ryuji: Yo, so I was wondering when you might be free to hang out again?**

**Akira: I have some time this upcoming Saturday, how about then?**

**Ryuji: Sounds good!**

**Akira: Looking forward to it.**

Akira was about to put his phone away when a sudden thought struck him. He continued to type as he walked, occasionally bumping into other pedestrians which resulted in quick, uncomfortable apologies.

**Akira: By the way, do you know about any other athletes staying here?**

**Ryuji: Yeah, there’s a bunch of them because of the training center nearby,  myself included. Why?**

**Akira: I met another one today. Did not like him AT ALL**

**Ryuji: Really? Who was he?**

**Akira: Some volleyball coach named Suguru Kamoshida. Have you heard of him?**

By the time Ryuji finally responded Akira had already reached his apartment. He read the message while he settled into the sofa of his living room, curious as to why Ryuji had taken so long to reply.

**Ryuji: Akira, can you make a promise with me?**

That caught him off-guard.

**Akira: What’s wrong?**

**Ryuji: Can you promise to avoid him? No matter what? Don’t even talk to him**

The sudden sobriety in Ryuji’s message surprised Akira even more.

**Akira: That won’t be an issue, I was actually hoping I wouldn’t have to see him again. But what brought this up?**

**Ryuji: I’m sorry I can’t tell you. Please just trust me on this one though okay?**

**Akira: Alright.**

Akira could feel a sense of urgency coming from the blond’s words, and he wondered what kind of man this Kamoshida person was to make Ryuji want the florist to avoid him at all costs.

Still, if the familiar vexation Akira had felt earlier around the volleyball coach was any indicator, then he knew that the reason would be all too similar to what it was when he first met someone like Kamoshida:

Something sinister remained hidden beneath that man’s public appearance.

* * *

 

 Saturday couldn’t have come soon enough. The florist and athlete had arranged to meet up at the ramen shop, and when Akira arrived he was greeted by the sight of Ryuji already sitting at the counter waving at him.

“Hey! Saved you a seat.” greeted Ryuji, a lone duffel bag occupying the stool next to him.

“Thanks,” replied Akira before placing the bag onto the floor and settling beside the blond.

He had been looking forward to spending more time with Ryuji, and their conversation was lively as they ate, a warm feeling of joy spreading through Akira that seemed to ignite his body whenever the blond laughed. After the two finished eating Ryuji let out a sigh of satisfaction while he stretched his arms above his head.

“Maaaan, that was good! Nothing beats a good bowl of ramen after a day of training!”

Akira, who was still working through his own bowl, slurped up the last of his noodles before he talked: “I just don’t know how you do it. I’m pretty sure I’d die from all that exercise.”

“Eh, it’s not so bad once ya get used to it. Besides, shouldn’t risk falling out of shape even if I wasn’t a sprinter!”

“I wouldn’t worry about that. I mean look at me, I can’t even remember the last time I worked out and I’m still fine.” joked Akira.

Ryuji’s arms dropped to his sides as he stared at him, the shocked expression on his face almost comical. “Dude, for real?”

“Well, I got my hands full with the shop most of the time, so yeah.” Akira nonchalantly shrugged his shoulders.

Ryuji suddenly stood up. “Excuse me, the bill please!” he called towards the waitress before leaning down to grab his duffel bag.

“Woah, what’s the sudden hurry?” questioned Akira.

Ryuji glanced at Akira. “We gotta get to the park before it closes if we wanna train there!”

“ _Huh_?”

“You heard me. No better time to start than the present!”

When the waitress arrived Ryuji gave her enough payment in bills to cover both of their meals, and before Akira could even protest Ryuji was hoisting him out of his seat by the arm and dragging him through the doors of the ramen shop.

“Wait, Ryuji, I don’t even have the right clothes on—“ he started to splutter.

“S’fine, I have spares in my bag!”

“We  _just_ ate—”

“It’ll all settle once we get there! And besides,” Ryuji’s movements slowed, and Akira felt the grasp on his arm slacken a bit. “this’ll give us an excuse to hang out longer, right?”

Oh.

Ryuji turned and smiled at him, but something along the corners of his mouth seemed strained, a nervous look glinting in his eyes.

“R-right…” was all Akira could say in response. Ryuji let go of his arm, and Akira steadied himself before walking after the blond, suddenly finding himself short of breath and his face burning.

Actually, maybe he could use a bit of a workout.

* * *

 

They took the train, and once they arrived at the park Ryuji had hustled him into the restroom to change. Akira emerged in a tank top, shorts, and sneakers, an outfit he had never expected to wear again after he left high school. When he stepped out of the restroom he found Ryuji waiting expectantly for him underneath the shade of a tree hanging over the pathway; the blond’s gaze lingered onto the clothes before snapping back up to Akira’s eyes. “Heh, it’s not a bad look on you,” teased Ryuji.

Akira rolled his eyes while he returned the duffel bag back to its owner. “Thanks. Anyways, so what now?”

“It’s obvious, ain’t it?” replied Ryuji while he started to stretch. “We run! Oh, do a few stretches before you start though.” Akira tried his best to mimic the sprinter’s movements, and the blond stood back up once he was done. “I don’t do a lot of long distance stuff, but for someone like you who’s just starting out we can stick to that.”

“Sure. Can’t be all that bad can it?”

How very wrong he was.        

They started to jog down the trail, and within several minutes Akira found himself heaving for air while he stumbled down the path.

The florist would admit that he wasn’t in the most ideal shape, but his lack of stamina was downright embarrassing, and trying to run alongside Ryuji certainly wasn’t boosting his confidence.

“Ryuji—I, I don’t think I can run anymore.” wheezed Akira.

“Don’t tell me that’s all you have bro! Come on, keep going!” huffed Ryuji. Small trickles of sweat trailed down his face, but other than that the blond seemed completely unaffected by their jog.

“No—no use. I’m gonna take a break.” panted Akira. He started to drag his feet to a standstill when suddenly he felt a pair of hands pushing him from behind, forcing Akira to move forward.

“Ah!”

“Hey, don’t stop now!” exclaimed Ryuji as he continued to push the other man forward. “At least keep going to the next turn!”

“W-wait, slow down Ryuji!” protested Akira as he was suddenly moving at a faster pace than his legs could take. More forceful pushing, and finally he tripped and fell flat onto the gravel trail, Ryuji following suit after him with a yelp.

The two laid there for a few moments, the sting of gravel pricking Akira’s face. He felt Ryuji stir above him, and the crushing weight on Akira’s back began to lessen.

“A-ah! Shit, um, I-I’m so sorry Akira! I should’ve listened to you I was being really stupid and—” started Ryuji as he tried to push himself off Akira.

Akira slowly flipped his body over, staring up at the flustered expression on Ryuji’s face, into the wide brown eyes hovering inches above him, and laughed.

Ryuji gawked at the florist, more confused than ever.

 “O-oi, you didn’t hurt your head with that fall did you?” asked Ryuji, concerned. Akira continued to laugh, and Ryuji sighed before allowing an affectionate smile to break through, bursting into a fit of laughter himself. He leaned to the side and laid himself besides Akira, their laughs echoing through the trees.

Their chuckles eventually died down and Akira pushed himself back into a sitting position. “Damn, I don’t think I’ve felt a rush like that in a while.”

“What rush?”

“You know, that exhilaration you get when you feel like you’re about to die?”

“H-hey, it’s not like I was trying to make you fall!”  objected Ryuji.

Akira chuckled again. “Sorry, just wanted to tease. More importantly, why are we still on the ground?” he stood up and extended a hand to Ryuji. “Here.”

Ryuji’s stared at his hand, and the other man hesitated a moment before grasping onto it. With a grunt of effort Akira hauled him back up.

“Thanks.” said Ryuji as he brushed the dust from his clothes.

“Not a problem. If anything, I should be thanking you.”

“Huh? Why?”

“Well, you see,” Akira grinned. “I always have so much fun when I’m hanging out with you.”

Ryuji’s face was flushed; he averted his gaze and turned his head to the side, rubbing the back of his neck. “Heh, I’m glad you feel that way…” he murmured. The blond turned towards Akira again, the blush on his face even darker than before. “A-anyways, we should keep going before it gets dark— shit!” Ryuji stopped talking, his mouth slightly hanging open.

“Hm, what’s wrong?”

“Damn it, Akira I’m so sorry…the…the fall kinda cut opened your face.” answered Ryuji in a small voice.

Now that Ryuji mentioned it his cheek did still sting a little.

Akira brought a hand up to his left cheek and lightly brushed against his fingers where it stung the most. Sure enough, when he withdrew his fingers a small splotch of crimson stained the tips.

Ryuji started stammering out profuse apologies again before Akira held up a hand to stop him, wiping away the remaining blood with his other arm. “It’s fine Ryuji. I’ve honestly had worse from thorns.” he gave a sympathetic smile. “Besides, can’t call it anything compared to the state you were in before.”

Ryuji was silent for a moment before responding. “Akira, about that…” he raised a hand to touch the mark streaked across his cheek, a pink outline against his skin. “I just want to say, er, thanks, for uh, taking care of me that time.” he mumbled.

Akira could feel his face burning again. “O-oh. Uh, you’re welcome.”

The air was silent again; Ryuji ran a hand through his hair, mussing up the blond spikes. “Soooo, why did we stop running again?”

“I thought we were having a moment?” joked Akira.

“Ah hell man, I ain’t too good with sappy shit. Let’s keep going!”

“Can’t we just walk the rest of the way?” complained Akira.

Ryuji grinned at him. “Come on, you can’t give up on me here!” he started to jog forward again.

Akira groaned before forcing himself to follow after the blond.

By the time Akira got home the florist was completely exhausted; he collapsed onto the sofa, legs sore and Ryuji’s clothes still clinging to his body.

He would wash them later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Ahhhhhh feels good to be writing again! I was trying to decide between a ramen shop date and a park date, so I thought, "why not just have them do both???"  
> Anways, hope you guys liked it! Reading through your comments makes me super happy, and I just want to say thanks so much for the support you’ve given this story!!!! :D)


	6. In the Eye of a Hurricane There Is Quiet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Hi guys! So I just wanted to note that even though the protag's official name came out, I'm still going to be using Akira Kurusu because of personal preference ^^'. I apologize to anyone this bothers.  
> Anyways, hope you enjoy this chapter!)

Autumn had fully descended upon Tokyo, the air crisp and cool but the leaves on the trees a vivid palette of warm colors. Through the windows of the Velvet Room Floral, Akira gazed out at the light shower of rain that fell from the gray sky, finding himself slightly astonished at how quickly the year was drawing to its end.

A little more than a month had already passed since he first met Ryuji, September meeting its end and half of October slipping by before Akira knew it. His time with Ryuji had become one of the highlights in his packed schedule, and as Akira continued to stare at the falling rain his thoughts trailed off into planning where they should go for their next meet up.

Haru emerged from the storage room tying a work apron around her waist; she glanced at Akira, observing his vacant stare and the pruning shears hanging limply in his hand.

“You know, Akira, you seem much more… content these past few weeks.” noted Haru.

“Do I?”

“Mmhm, a lot less on edge, too.” she smiled. “Being around ‘you-know-who’ is certainly lifting your spirits.”

Akira rolled his eyes, desensitized now to his friends’ teasing. “I guess so.”

Haru giggled as she joined Akira behind the shop counter. “Glad you’re bold enough to admit it now. So, what were you just thinking about?”

“Mm, not much. Just trying to come up with a good place to take him to.” answered Akira; enough time had passed for him to no longer feel the need to hide his thoughts about Ryuji from his friends, although he still had to insist that the feelings he possessed towards the sprinter were completely within bounds (his objections falling upon willfully deaf ears).

“Hmm, if that’s the case, then I know a lovely restaurant you two could go to,” remarked Haru while she pulled out her phone. She showed Akira the restaurant’s webpage, and the florist almost let out an exclamation of disbelief when he saw the prices reach the five-digit mark.

“Thanks Haru, but, uh… I think that might be a _little_ out of my budget.” replied Akira weakly.

“Don’t worry, I never said you two would be the ones paying.” stated Haru dismissively while she tucked her phone away.

“Haru, you don’t have to—”

“Akira,” interjected Haru. “It’s fine, honestly. I just want you to experience the best time possible with him. Besides,” she smiled and averted her gaze. “It’s the least I can do to repay what you’ve done for me.”

_Haru…_

“A-Are you sure?”

“Absolutely,” affirmed Haru. “ And I won’t take no for an answer.” she added when Akira looked as if he would start protesting again.

Akira closed his mouth and grinned sheepishly. “Alright then, thank you so much Haru.”

Haru gave a cheerful smile. “Of course!” She pulled out a pair of pruning shears from her pocket and started helping Akira snip off dead stems from the potentilla he had been working on.

“You know, Akira, I was actually kind of worried about what this Ryuji person would be like. That day you came in with a bandage on your face I was about ready to report him to Makoto before you explained what happened.” she confessed.

Akira chuckled. “Glad you didn’t. She definitely would’ve scolded us for getting him arrested after it was all cleared up.”

They laughed, and Haru set the pruning shears aside once she was done tidying up the rest of the flowers. “You simply must properly introduce him to the rest of us when you have the chance!”

“Heh, someday.”

Haru placed the potted potentilla back on the rack it came from. “Oh, and I’ll be sure to give you what you need to enter the restaurant under my name before the… meet up.” she winked at him while she walked towards the door to open up shop. “Cheers to a night that you hopefully won’t forget!”

* * *

 

“Eh, for _real_? We’re actually gonna be eating here?” exclaimed Ryuji.

“Well, yeah. Why else did you think I made you dress up if we weren’t?”

“Er, I dunno man, just, uh,  _seriously_? _Here_?” asked Ryuji as he continued to blatantly gawk at the opulent exterior of the restaurant, a couple of passer-bys giving him disdainful looks before entering.

“Honestly I can hardly believe it either, but my friend really wanted us to try it, so uh, I guess… let’s head in?”

“Yeah… alright.”

Akira adjusted his tie for what felt like the tenth time that day, although he was at least more properly dressed than Ryuji:

The blond was wearing formal attire like Akira had asked (the restaurant wouldn’t allow them to enter otherwise), but he had still managed to add some casual qualities even to that outfit, with his slackened tie, scuffed dress shoes, rolled up sleeves and firm shoulders outlined by the coat of his suit which clung to his body—

Akira had to stop his train of thought before it steered off the rails.

The two of them entered with stiff movements, the feeling of being completely out of place mutual, and once they were inside Akira could see the confusion that flashed in the host’s eyes from seeing guests who weren’t wealthy regulars.

“…Welcome, sirs.” greeted the host after he recovered from his initial surprise. “May I please have your name and reservation time?”

Akira pulled out the card that Haru had given him from his wallet (“When they ask you for a name just give them this card. They should ring everything up under my name once you do.” she had told him).

“Um, I have a reservation for seven, and about the name I was told to give you this?” replied Akira as he handed the card to the host.

The host took the card and swiped it into the register. He bowed as he returned the card to Akira. “It is an honor to serve associates of Okumura-san. Please, right this way.”

The host led them to a table, and once they were seated Ryuji relaxed into his usual slouched posture, trying to act as naturally as if he was sitting at their usual ramen shop hangout.

Ryuji casually picked up a menu and flipped through it, eyes growing wider with each flip. “For real?!” he exclaimed a little too loudly, catching a couple of annoyed looks from others seated around them.

Akira couldn’t help but slightly flinch at the way Ryuji’s voice seemed to echo through the quiet atmosphere, but the blond himself didn’t seem to notice the unwelcoming stares his behavior was attracting.

“Yo Akira, are you sure your friend is cool with us just getting _anything_?” questioned Ryuji, looking up from the menu.

“I mean, she gave me the ‘ok’ for it, so I’d say yeah so long as it’s with reason.” replied Akira while he also read through the menu.

“Er… so what exactly counts as ‘within reason’ here?”

Skimming through the prices, Akira wasn’t able to give an answer.

They both ended up settling on options that were more on the “cheaper” side.

The two of them idly chatted away as they sat there waiting for their food to arrive, and while Akira listened to Ryuji describe the plot of a new manga he was reading a familiar face visible out of the corner of his eye caught his attention.

Akira felt a familiar hostility bubble up in his stomach again.

Oh no.

Of all the people to appear, of course it had to be the last person he ever wanted to see. Kamoshida was standing there waiting for the host to find a table, and by his side stood a woman with blonde hair and blue eyes who looked at least ten years younger than him. Akira hardly paid any attention to her though as he felt his lip curl in disgust at having to see the older man’s face again.

Thankfully, it didn’t seem that the volleyball coach had noticed them. Kamoshida and the woman sat at a table a good distance away from them, and Akira did his best to ignore the couple while he continued his conversation with Ryuji; it was also probably for the best that he didn’t alert the other man of Kamoshida’s presence.

That was his intention, until Ryuji decided he needed to use the restroom.

Before Akira could say anything the blond stood up and headed right towards where Kamoshida and the woman were seated. Akira prayed that Ryuji walked by without noticing them:

“What are you two doing here?!”

No such luck.

From his chair Akira could see the livid expression on Ryuji’s face, and he found himself frozen to the spot as Ryuji advanced menacingly towards Kamoshida.

Kamoshida remained seated; he calmly set the menu aside and stared up at Ryuji, a mildly amused smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. “We’re enjoying an evening out together, obviously. And I could honestly ask the same of you, Sakamoto-kun. I’m surprised that a brute like you would be dining here of all places.”

“ _Huh_?” growled Ryuji, slamming his hand down on the table and causing the silverware to clatter. The woman slightly winced but kept quiet, blue eyes avoiding Ryuji’s vehement glare. “As if a piece of shit like you is in any position to talk!”

Kamoshida didn’t reply. He casually took a sip of his drink, not even bothering to look Ryuji in the eye. “Careful, Sakamoto-kun. Is this really the best place to start a fight?”

Ryuji hesitated, glancing around and finally seeming to notice the virulent glares and harsh whispers from onlookers. The sprinter slumped his shoulders and turned his head towards the woman instead. “Ann… and you, how could you just… with him…” he started, trailing off when the woman still refused to look him in the eye, her lips tightened into a strained line.

So that was Ann. She was a beautiful lady, Akira thought. No surprises that something romantic must’ve happened between her and Ryuji, although it evidently took a turn for the worse if she resorted to going out with someone like Kamoshida.

Ryuji’s shoulders tensed again and he looked like he was about to lose his temper, so Akira shot up from his chair and strode towards him. The sprinter raised his fist to bang on the table once more, but Akira caught him by the wrist before he could.

“Ryuji!”

He knew it wasn’t his place to interfere in a lover (or more likely now ex-lover)’s quarrel of all things, but he couldn’t bring himself to just stand aside and do nothing.

Ryuji glanced at Akira, anger still flaring in his eyes. “Akira, stay out of this.”

“Absolutely not.” he stated firmly. “You need to calm down.”

“Finally, someone else who’s being rational.” remarked Kamoshida. “And who might you be though?” the volleyball coach stared at him until recognition dawned upon his face. “Oh, I remember now. You’re that florist without a sense of humor.” he teased, causing Akira to grimace. “Strange that someone like you would be hanging out with someone like him of all people.” He shifted his gaze back between him and Ryuji. “Don’t tell me that you two are…”

Akira felt Ryuji’s wrist hastily slip out of his grasp. The blond shoved both of his hands in his pockets, glaring at Kamoshida and Ann a little longer, before turning his back on them and walking towards the door without a word.

The florist hesitated; he took one last glance at Kamoshida’s smug expression and Ann’s averted gaze before quickly following Ryuji out the doors.

“Hey wait, Ryuji!” he called, striding just to keep up with the other man. Ryuji didn’t acknowledge him, still marching down the street, and Akira took a few jogging steps before finally managing to catch Ryuji by the arm. “Ryuji!” he shouted, yanking him back towards him.

“ _What_?” yelled Ryuji, wrenching his arm out of Akira’s grasp. “Can’t you see I’m pissed as hell right now?”

“Anyone can see that! It’s why I chased you down in the first place!” snapped Akira. “Just slow down for a damn minute though, will you?”

Ryuji glared at him. Finally he huffed in exasperation and plopped himself down on the curb, a tired expression taking hold of his features.

Akira settled himself beside Ryuji, staring out into the darkness that flickered between the streetlamps.

“Ryuji…” he started.

“I know! Okay? I know. I was acting bat-shit crazy in there and I was embarrassing you, but when I saw those two together I just couldn’t... let it slide.” Ryuji crouched forward, elbows pressing into his lap as he slid his hands through his hair.

“I mean uh, yeah, you were acting pretty crazy, but you weren’t embarrassing me.” replied Akira. Ryuji stared up at him with doubtful eyes. “Okay, maybe just a little,” he admitted “But I honestly couldn’t give a damn anymore about what those snooty people in there think. Plus, I just wanted to say that I think it’s pretty shitty that you had to see something like that. That bastard going out with your ex-girlfriend or something—“

“Woah, woah, hold on. Ann’s not my girlfriend. Never was.”

Well that threw Akira for a loop.

The florist pretty much knew that the roses Ryuji brought the first day they met were for Ann, and he had certainly heard Ryuji mumbling her name while he was asleep, but if it wasn’t because they were lovers, then what was it about her that was causing such extreme conflict between Ryuji and Kamoshida?

“She isn’t?”

“Uh, yeah.”

“Oh, er, then what was that all about?” asked Akira, trying to piece together the situation now that his initial assumption was refuted. He suddenly recalled how battered Ryuji looked when he first entered his store, and the more Akira thought about it the more uneasy he felt about the answer he was coming to; if the reason was actually much more dire than what he initially thought…

“Look man, I can’t tell you. It’s a whole whirlwind of crazy shit that I don’t want you to get caught up in.” Ryuji gave a strained smile. “So just don’t worry about it, okay? I’ll get it all sorted out eventually.”

Ryuji’s statement touched a nerve in Akira. “Or you could just place a little more faith in me. Who knows, I might even be able to help!” he snapped, surprising even himself with the aggression of his words.

He could see that his outburst had taken Ryuji aback. “Chill dude. What are _you_ getting so worked up for?”

“Oh, I don’t know Ryuji, maybe it’s the fact that you still can’t seem to trust me! If there’s something that’s possibly threatening you then of course I want to help out in any way I can!”

“Akira, this isn’t about me, okay? There’s already enough people getting hurt from this as it is and adding one more person to that list sure as hell isn’t going to help anyone!” yelled Ryuji.

Akira stood up and Ryuji followed suit after him. The two of them stood there glaring heatedly at each other, and after a while Akira could see exhaustion take over Ryuji again, shoulders gradually slumping in defeat. “I just can’t… I don’t want to see you get hurt too… so please, Akira, just don’t worry about this… please…” the blond started to tremble.

Akira could feel his anger slowly melt into guilt. He reached towards Ryuji, hesitating a moment before finally steeling his resolution and pulling him into an embrace.

Ryuji didn’t resist him. “Akira, don’t make this—”

“Ryuji,” interrupted Akira, clinging closer to the other man. “Shut up.”

The blond remained silent after that. Akira continued to hug him, and he eventually felt a pair of arms wrap around him to reciprocate.

“I’m sorry for being so pushy,” murmured Akira. “It’s fine if you’re not comfortable in sharing what’s going on with me, but I need you to also understand that I’m here to support you whenever you need it.”

“I know, and I’m sorry Akira, but I just… I need more time to think things through.”

“That’s fine. I’ll still be here once you’ve made up your mind on what to do.”

Ryuji still looked dispirited, so once they pulled away from each other Akira tried to his best to lighten up the mood with a corny smile. “Damn, it’s a shame we couldn’t have taken the food with us to-go.” he joked.

Ryuji’s eyes widened. “Ah shit! I completely forgot that we just left it all there.” he rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m so sorry dude—”

“Don’t be.” assured Akira. “I’m sure my friend will be satisfied that we at least bought something, and if not I’ll think of a way to make it up to her.” he smiled and playfully clapped Ryuji on the back. “I’m still pretty hungry though. Do you want to just head back to my place and binge on cup noodles? I think after all that I’m not really in the mood to eat anything pricey.”

“Yeah… I’d like that,”

They stopped by the convenience store, deciding to buy some pre-packaged sushi along with the cup noodles they picked out, and when they arrived back at Akira’s apartment everything almost felt right again; suit coats tossed aside onto the couch, the scent of cheap flavoring filling the room, and Morgana waiting underneath the table for Akira to feed him more scraps of sushi while the florist bantered with Ryuji.

By the time they were finished eating Ryuji’s mood had noticeably improved. He smiled and gave Akira’s arm a light, playful punch on the way back from throwing away his empty cup; the blond made a motion as if he was going to sit down again before quickly standing up and darting to the hallway, the bathroom door slamming shut.

“Ryuji?” Akira called. “What’s wrong?”

“I just remembered that I never ended up taking that leak.”

A moment of incredulousness, and Akira snorted before doubling over in laughter at how absurd Ryuji’s statement was in spite of the day’s wild turn of events.

“S’not funny man! I could’ve seriously died!” scolded Ryuji in mock irritation, voice muffled by the door.

Akira chuckled; he cleaned up the rest of the table and fed Morgana any remaining scraps of sushi as Ryuji emerged from the bathroom.

Ryuji stood there, watching the way Morgana cleaned off the lingering bits of fish from his face before taking his coat from the couch.

“I should get going. Thanks for the food, Akira.” he walked towards the door but was halted by Akira stepping in front of him.

“Wait. If you want you can spend the night here,” murmured Akira; it didn’t feel like either of them were ready to depart just yet.

The blond stepped back and the grasp on his coat slackened a bit. “Would that be okay with you?” he asked quietly.

“Of course.”

Ryuji accepted his offer to stay for the night, and as Akira was lying in bed he couldn’t help but ponder how the other man could always cover up the adversity he endured with a smile on his face.

At that moment Akira made a resolve:

He was going to do everything in his power to stop anything else from hurting Ryuji.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I'll be honest, when I first made this fic I wasn't really planning to make this into anything with an actual plot, but the more I continued to write this the more detail I wanted to add. Thanks for sticking around!! :D)


	7. Kindled

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH  
> Hey guys! With the power of procrastinating on homework, chapter 7 is done!  
> Also, I just wanna say thanks so much for all of your comments, kudos, and bookmarks!!! They always make me so so so so happy ;u; <3  
> Anyways, here's chapter 7, hope you enjoy reading!)

It was a beautiful afternoon. The rain had finally passed to reveal brilliant blue skies decorated by wisps of clouds, and although the air was still briskly cold Akira remained comfortably warm inside Café Leblanc; he held a cup of coffee between his hands and sat snugly inside one of the booths, enjoying the soothing heat that spread through the ceramic to his fingers and the rich smell that wafted up in a gentle steam. A few other cups of coffee and a can of soda were also placed on the table, but they were left undisturbed as Akira’s friends waited expectantly for what was about to transpire.

“So guys, I’d like to introduce someone… new today.” said Akira.

He turned his head towards Ryuji.

“Uh, h-hey, name’s Ryuji Sakamoto. Nice to meet ya.”

For a moment there was no response, and Ryuji nervously glanced around at the curious stares that were centered directly on him.

Thankfully, Haru was there to step in and move things along:

“Oh my, it’s very nice to meet you, Sakamoto-san! I think a proper introduction was quite overdue,” she beamed. Haru was sitting with Makoto in the seat across from Akira and Ryuji, and her enthusiasm was enough to spur everyone else out of their uncertainty.

“I agree. Akira talks pretty highly of you, so it’s safe to say that we were all looking forward to this quite a bit,” added Makoto as she reached for her cup of coffee now that the mood was more at ease.

“S-seriously?” Ryuji turned towards Akira, and the florist simply shrugged his shoulders and grinned.

“Guilty as charged.”

“Hm, well as long as you’re treating Akira right, then I don’t see any reason to be against you. Sooo, welcome to the team my dude!” said Futaba playfully from her stool at the counter.

Yusuke remained silent. He was sitting at the counter beside Futaba and his gaze was fixated upon Ryuji’s untidy blond hair.

“That… wouldn’t happen to be your natural hair color, would it?” asked the artist.

“Yusuke!” chided Makoto; she smiled anxiously at Ryuji as if anticipating him to be offended by the question.

“I apologize, the hair simply stood out to me as an unusual color if he was to be of full Japanese descent.” replied Yusuke while he observed Ryuji with inquisitive eyes; the tips of Ryuji’s ears were starting to turn pink under his unwavering stare.

 “Hoh, and I suppose people are naturally born into this world with tacky blue hair now?” teased Futaba.

“Why, my hair is of a perfectly respectable color, thank you! It is at the very least not as flashy as your orange,” replied Yusuke indignantly while he turned away to glare at woman seated right beside him.

“ _Eh_? You stoop so low as to insult my hair color? We settle this right here and now Inari!” she held up her fists.

“Hey now, you guys,” said Makoto sternly. “You’re being rather rude to Sakamoto-san here, don’t you think?”

“Ah. I had forgotten myself for a moment. My sincerest apologies…”

“S-sorry…”

Any other time Akira simply would’ve rolled his eyes and snickered at their antics, but given the situation at hand he couldn’t help but want to bury himself into the cushions of the booth.

Tired of his friends’ continuous insistence, Akira finally caved in and scheduled a get-together so everyone could meet Ryuji in person. Although it was mostly to get his friends off of his case, it was also an apology to Haru for wasting her money during the whole restaurant incident that occurred the week before. Much to Akira’s relief she was very understanding, and the only thing she had asked for was that Akira properly introduce his “friend” (she had said that specific word with a heavy, implicative emphasis) to her and the others. Sojiro had agreed to let them use the café, and currently the barista was occupied in arranging kitchen supplies, although it was apparent that he was listening in on the conversation as well.

Akira internally squirmed at his friends’ behavior, but Ryuji, surprisingly enough, seemed like he was actually enjoying himself. “Heh, it’s fine,” replied Ryuji with a good-natured grin, “I’m glad you guys are comfortable enough with me to start messing around.”

“That’s very polite of you, Sakamoto-san, but I assure you that there’s more we want to do so that you feel completely included within our group,”  said Makoto with a warm smile of her own. “Let’s all exchange numbers, that way you can keep in touch with us.”

“Sure,” said Ryuji as he leaned forward to give his cellphone to Makoto, his heavy jacket ruffling from the movement. The police officer typed in her phone number and added Ryuji's number to her own phone before passing the sprinter's cellphone along to Haru, and while everyone was occupied with exchanging their phone numbers Akira observed Ryuji from the corner of his eye, trying to see if the other man truly felt at ease being around them. He at least looked happy, a content expression on his face as he waited for his phone to return, the hood of his jacket crumpled slightly to reveal skin splotched with bruises on the side of his neck—

Bruises?

At first Akira thought he was seeing things, his mind doing a double take at the image. He checked again, and even though they were mostly concealed by the fabric of Ryuji’s hood Akira could still see the dark purple marks peeking out from beneath. A jolt of panic pierced right through him once he finally registered what he saw.

What the hell happened to Ryuji?

 Akira’s thoughts were racing now with the possibilities of what might have happened, but they soon came together to form the single conclusion that Kamoshida must’ve done something again.

He opened his mouth to say something but caught himself when he remembered that his other friends were still in the room; Akira glanced around, and from the looks of it no one else seemed to have noticed the bruises; Makoto, however, must’ve caught the troubled look in his eye.

“Something wrong, Akira?” she asked.

“It’s nothing. Just checking to see how everyone’s doing,” he assured, trying his best to keep a blank face while his thoughts were in turmoil. It wouldn’t be considerate to put Ryuji on the spot about something so serious in front of everyone by drawing attention to his injuries. He would just have to pretend they weren’t even there for now.

Makoto didn’t look entirely convinced, but she didn’t pry any further and started a light conversation with Haru instead.

Futaba was the last one to get the phone, and she stood up to return it to Ryuji. She handed the phone back to Ryuji, and once she was done with that she leaned across the table so that her mouth was next to Akira’s ear. She cupped her hands together around her mouth so that only Akira could hear her.

“You know, I was kind of expecting him to be a lot more assertive,” remarked Futaba in a low whisper. “but I guess that just means you two switch between who tops right?” She stood back up and grinned deviously at him.

“Futaba!” spluttered Akira as he held up a hand to hastily shoo her away, accidentally spilling a bit of his coffee on the table from the sudden movement. He shouldn’t have been fazed by his friends’ teasing anymore, but Futaba always still managed to find some way to get under his skin, and the woman cackled as she returned to her stool, triumphant.

“Uh, you alright? What’d she say to you Akira?” asked Ryuji, concerned at his sudden loss of composure.

“Nothing!” answered Akira a little too quickly. He took a sip of his coffee, ignoring how his fingers were still wet from the bit he had spilled, and looked Ryuji straight in the eyes once he was certain his face wasn’t red anymore. “It’s nothing you should worry about,” he said with the same winsome smile he used whenever he wanted to convince a customer to buy something. Unfortunately, it had the direct opposite effect Akira had hoped for; if anything, Ryuji looked a little disturbed now.

“I must say, your behavior is highly suspicious Akira. An exchange of information clearly occurred between you and Futaba, and I demand to know what secrets you are hiding from us,” remarked Yusuke amusedly.

“Come on you two, spill the beans! What exactly were you guys talking about?” asked Haru.

“Eh, I don’t mind if Akira shares it. If anything, some confirmation would actually be nice,” replied Futaba gleefully.

“Confirmation? What the hell were you two talking about bro?” asked Ryuji.

All gazes were focused attentively on Akira now. Even Sojiro had paused in clearing away empty plates to wait for his response, his act of minding his own business completely dropped, and the florist suddenly found the warmth of the café to be unbearably stifling.

Akira wondered if he would still be alive by the end of the day.

* * *

 

Several half-assed lies later they finally decided to drop the subject for Akira’s sake, and the atmosphere of the café was lively as the group enjoyed another day spent together. It felt just as good as every other time they were together, and the only difference was that Ryuji was also a part of them now. Hell, maybe things even felt a little better because he was there; Ryuji just seemed to naturally fit in, laughing and chatting away with the rest of them, and by the time they were done Akira could tell that his friends were just as happy as he was to have him in their group.

If Akira allowed himself to, he could believe that everything was going to be alright, that they would all just spend the rest of their days like this having fun together, but the occasional glances back at Ryuji’s neck proved otherwise, and the florist’s feelings of mirth and joy were laced with worry and unease.

By the time they were done his friends were all leaving in high spirits. They said their farewells to Sojiro, thanking him for the drinks, and exited out the door. Akira and Ryuji were the last ones out, and before the group parted ways Akira’s friends each gave Ryuji a warm expression of gratitude for spending time with them before exchanging farewells and going on their way.

The two men were the only ones left.

“This was great, Akira! You’re friends with some awesome people, you know.” praised the blond as he clapped Akira on the back, grinning. “Well, I’ll be heading out now too. I’ll see you around dude. Thanks for inviting me to hang.”

There was no smile, no expression of happiness on Akira’s face, and Ryuji’s brown eyes filled with concern at the sight.

“H-hey man, what’s wrong?” he asked nervously.

Akira turned his head, gray eyes fixing onto Ryuji with a catlike sharpness.

“Ryuji, before you go, I need you to be honest with me, okay?” He lifted a hand and gently tugged down the hood of Ryuji’s jacket, revealing purple-blue bruises that were printed upon both sides of Ryuji’s neck in exactly ten spots. He could take a guess at what they were from, and Akira felt his blood starting to boil.

“Where did you get these bruises from?” he asked as levelly as he could.

Ryuji quickly tried to cover up the marks with his hand. “It’s… nothing you should worry about,” he muttered.

 _Stay calm_.

“They’re from Kamoshida, aren’t they?”

Ryuji didn’t answer.

“Ryuji, please, tell me the truth. Did he do this?”

Ryuji still didn’t say anything, but he curtly nodded his head, lips tightly pressed together.

He knew it. “That son of a bitch,” hissed Akira through clenched teeth. He reached out towards Ryuji. but the other man took a step back to avoid contact.

“They’ll heal up eventually, it’s not a big deal.” insisted Ryuji fiercely, “I’m sorry I worried you, but it’ll be fine.” he turned to leave. “I really should get going. Later Akira.”

“Oh no, you’re not getting away that easily,” objected Akira as he pulled Ryuji back by the shoulder. He grasped onto Ryuji’s arm and started pulling the other man along with him as he walked.

“Woah, woah, hey! Where are we going?” protested Ryuji, although he didn’t really put up a struggle to free his arm.

“My place,” affirmed Akira, “I have stuff there to patch you up with,”

 “Seriously? Look, would you cut it out already Akira? I don’t need you to effing baby me all the time!”  
“Ryuji,” he deadpanned, “if you don’t let me do this, I will never speak to you again.”

“For real? Like you’d actually—”

A piercing stare from Akira was enough to shut Ryuji up, and they trudged together in silence until he felt Ryuji start tugging at his arm again.

“Hm?”

“You can let go of me now. I can walk just fine.”

Akira released Ryuji’s arm, and the two didn’t exchange another word for the rest of the trip.

Once they arrived at his apartment Akira went straight to the bathroom to retrieve a medical kit, and Ryuji sat down sullenly on the couch with his arms crossed as he waited.

Akira returned a few moments later, medical kit in hand, and he settled beside Ryuji on the couch before opening up the kit. He took out a small bottle from the kit, unscrewed the lid, and poured out the salve onto a cotton pad. Ryuji cringed when Akira started smearing the cotton swab across his injuries but kept still.

“You sure you know what you’re doing?” asked Ryuji sulkily.

“Don’t worry, this is certified to work wonders by the back-alley doctor who gave it to me.”

“You’re kidding, right?”

“Hah, wish I was. Don’t worry though, she’s definitely more brilliant than most doctors out there anyways.”

He finished treating the bruises in no time, and he gave Ryuji the bottle once he was done applying the salve. “Here, you can keep this. I can always get more later,”

Ryuji stared at the bottle placed in his palm; he gripped the bottle and shoved it into his pocket. “I can’t effin’ stand it,” he muttered.

“What can’t you stand?”

“You! Always looking out for me n’ shit, always helping me when I can’t seem to do anything in return—”

“Hey, you know I’m not doing any of this for a reward, right?” interjected Akira.

“But that’s just it! You’re always putting up with me, and I haven’t done jack shit for you that’s enough to show how effin’ grateful I am for it,” Ryuji’s hands were balled into tight fists on his lap.

“Listen Ryuji, what you just said right now was absolute bullshit,” stated Akira. “First of all, I help you because—” _I care about you so damn much_ “—I want to, and second of all, you’ve done more than enough to repay me, which is why, if anything, _I_ don’t feel like I’m doing enough for _you_. I haven’t forgotten the times you’ve stopped by my shop in your free time and helped out.”

“But that was so you could close up earlier—”

“And not only that, either,” continued Akira. “Whenever we hung out together, and you were always going out of your way to make sure I was having fun, smiling and laughing, you were…”  he rubbed the back of his neck with his palm. “You were giving me something important that made living feel more… worthwhile.” he mumbled.

Ryuji stared at him, brows furrowed together. His shoulders were tense and Akira could see he was shaking.

“What the hell’s up with you? Saying stuff like that… you’ve done the same for me too, y’know!" he cried, outraged. "Being around you, every time, it’s like… agh, I don't even know how to put it into words. It’s like being… free.” Ryuji’s voice was shaking. “Agh! I don’t know how else to describe it! Whenever I’m with you, I feel… like I’ve found a place where I belong. And honestly, it’s been a long time since I’ve felt like that." Ryuji's hands were no longer curled into fists. "You’ve given me something that's damn important too, Akira. I…” his voice trailed off.

“Ryuji—” started Akira.

Ryuji grabbed him by the shoulders and quickly kissed him on the lips.

For a moment Akira’s brain completely shut down.

He stared, eyes wide open, at Ryuji as the blond removed his mouth from Akira’s. Ryuji stared back, brown eyes locking with gray ones, and the other man’s face suddenly flushed a deep red.

“A-ah!” spluttered Ryuji as he leapt back, back pressed against the arm of the sofa and legs swung onto the cushions. “Sh-shit! Uh, I’m so sorry I don’t know what came over me I just kinda… er, well, actions speak louder than words I guess?” he finished weakly.

Akira didn’t answer, still staring at Ryuji with wide eyes.

“S-so, um… what did you think… of… that?” asked Ryuji sheepishly.

Akira leaned towards Ryuji, the couch creaking underneath his weight.  He scooted closer until their faces were close enough to barely touch. “Actions speak louder than words, right?” said Akira, giving a mischievous smile that caused Ryuji to flush even darker. The rush of giddiness he was riding had swept away all of his fear and hesitancy, and Akira wasn’t going to wait for this any longer.

He closed the distance between them with another kiss and holy shit, he was actually _doing_ this. It had been awhile since he’d actually kissed anybody, so he was definitely being a little clumsy, but Ryuji didn’t resist him, and instead the sprinter slowly wrapped his arms around Akira’s back  and pulled Akira even closer to him, causing the florist to short-circuit at the contact.

It was one of the most fantastic things Akira had ever experienced.

Ryuji’s lips were warm against his own, slightly chapped from the autumn wind but Akira couldn’t care less because it was Ryuji of all fucking people he got to kiss and at that moment he just felt so _alive_ , everything vanishing into a perfect state of pure bliss because he discovered that the person he had tried so desperately to cover up his feelings for actually felt the same way for him…

Akira climbed onto the couch so that his body was directly on top of Ryuji’s and he heard Ryuji let out a small moan beneath him, the noise shooting lightning right through his nerves. He decided to be a little daring and dragged his tongue across the other man’s lower lip, and Ryuji quietly whimpered before slightly opening his mouth to give Akira what he wanted. _Shit_ , this was seriously doing things to him.

Akira delved his tongue inside Ryuji’s mouth, and he actually thought he was going to burn alive from the searing heat that was stoked by all the damn noises Ryuji was making. The taste of the soda Ryuji had drank while they were at the café mingled with the taste of the coffee Akira had, and although the combination would’ve been a little gross any other time Akira hungrily searched out for more of it. The kiss from an outsider’s view must’ve looked pretty disgusting too, way too much tongue and teeth clacking against each other, but to Akira it was absolutely perfect.

It took a long time for Akira to regain enough sense to pull away, swiping away the thin line of spit that had trailed off from his lips with his tongue.

Ryuji stared at him through half-lidded eyes, panting. His lips were swollen and slightly parted, and Akira could feel something scalding hot stir within him at the sight of how damn cute Ryuji was.

“Shit… you look incredible, Akira,” breathed Ryuji as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

“Yeah… you too,”

“But uh… could you get off of me now?” asked Ryuji nervously.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, i-it’s just, I, um…”

“Is this what you’re worried about?” asked Akira before he could stop himself. Apparently today was just the day that he made a lot of bold moves.

Fuck it, no turning back now. He shifted his weight slightly and pressed the front of his erection against Ryuji’s bulge.

Ryuji yelped at the contact. “A-Akira…”

“See? I’m hard too,” he murmured into Ryuji’s ear, pressing down a bit more and slowly grinding against his erection. Ryuji whimpered and bucked his hips upward at the contact. “You’re so fucking perfect Ryuji. Please, I want to take things a step further. Will you let me?”

Ryuji moaned as he rocked his hips against him. “Yes, fuck yes. Let’s do it Akira,”

Holy  _fuck_  did that turn Akira on. His face was completely flushed, and keeping his cool had become damn-near impossible at the sight of Ryuji writhing and pleading beneath him.

He wondered if he could last longer than a minute.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Look forward to smut kicking off the start of chapter 8 ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)  
> Thanks for reading!!!)


	8. A True Friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Hey guys, here's chapter 8! I have so many ideas bouncing around but I don't know how to convey them all ;-;  
> Anyways, hope you enjoy reading!)

If this was a dream, then Akira hoped he never woke up.

No, he couldn’t have been dreaming; trailing his hands down Ryuji’s sides, feeling the warm heat and firm muscle as Ryuji moaned and grasped onto his back for support, this was definitely real, as unbelievable as it was, and for once in his life Akira felt like the luckiest man alive.

He lifted Ryuji’s shirt and planted a trail of kisses down the sprinter’s bare chest and stomach, one for each bruise on Ryuji’s neck.

“H-hey, that tickles dude,” chuckled Ryuji weakly but not making any attempt to push him away.

Akira unzipped the front of the other man’s pants and tugged them down to reveal a pair of neon-pink underwear with bright green bands, and the florist could only stare at the unexpected colors that greeted him.

“It’s like a watermelon,” he commented blankly

“D-don’t judge. It’s not like people can see them with my pants on anyways.” muttered Ryuji, his face even pinker than his underwear.

“I wasn’t judging. I actually think they’re really cute,” replied Akira before pressing his palm against the front of Ryuji’s briefs, the contact practically scorching Akira’s hand.

“Jeez, don’t say that—mmm!” Ryuji’s hips snapped forward and oh _god_ was that hot to see.

“Sorry, but it’s true,” teased Akira, causing Ryuji to flush even darker. Akira was practically surging with confidence now that all of his fears of rejection were gone, and although he still felt like his heart was going to burst in his chest any moment from beating so damn hard, his exhilaration was overshadowed by the determination to make Ryuji feel as good as possible.

The florist grinded his palm in circles, and Ryuji whined at the contact until Akira stopped to tug his briefs down, exposing the other man’s heavy erection.

“A-ah, Akira…” started Ryuji almost shyly. Precum was already beading at the tip of the flushed head, and the sprinter averted his gaze in embarrassment once he saw his own arousal.

“Oh, fuck…” whispered Akira, his mouth dry. This was too much, getting to be the one to see Ryuji like this, bearing himself to Akira of all people.

“Come on man, don’t just stare…” mumbled Ryuji.

“Oh, s-sorry, um…” Akira suddenly found himself at a loss of what to do. The circuits in his brain were completely fried now after seeing something like _this_ , and he couldn’t even move his hands.

Ryuji could see how addled the florist had become, and his reddened face split into a cheeky smirk at being given the lead . “Heh, what’s the matter? Morgana got your tongue? Here,” the sprinter unzipped Akira’s pants and pulled down his jeans and boxers. “S-shit,” said Ryuji as he tried his best not to falter like Akira did once he saw Akira’s cock. “Okay, so, um, I don’t really know jack shit about stuff like this, but, uh… I… think…”  he hesitated before wrapping his hand tentatively around Akira’s length, and Akira’s stalling brain snapped back into motion when Ryuji started slowly pumping his cock.

“Fuck…” moaned Akira as he jerked forward into Ryuji’s hand.

“Feels good?” asked Ryuji anxiously as he continued to slowly stroke him.

“Yeah, real good…” said Akira. “But…”  the florist wrapped his own hand around Ryuji’s cock, heat throbbing into his palm, and gave the shaft a firm stroke that had Ryuji moaning and sending shivers down Akira’s spine. “I can’t be the one who has all the fun.”

“Fuck, _Akira_.” whined Ryuji as he began thrusting into Akira’s hand. The two continued to rock against each other with panting breaths, and Akira could feel himself leaking into Ryuji’s hand and vice versa when an idea struck him.

“W-wait, Ryuji,”

Ryuji quickly withdrew his hand, and Akira had to bite back a whimper at the sudden loss of heat around his aching member. “Shit! I wasn’t hurting you was I?”

“I’m fine, I just, er, wanna try something though,” Akira gently brushed his cock against Ryuji’s and grasped their lengths together in his hand. He resumed thrusting, rubbing the undersides of their cocks against each other.

“ _Holy_ fuck,” moaned Ryuji as he tossed his head back, thrusting upward into Akira’s hand while precum spilled over from his tip and dribbled down Akira’s hand. “Fuck! Akira, that feels really good!”

 “Ngh—glad you think so,” breathed Akira as he increased the speed of his thrusts and rode the wave of mounting pleasure; the amount of precum leaking from their cocks was making the slide between them much easier.

Ryuji squirmed and moaned at the increase in tempo, hands clinging tightly to the back of Akira’s jacket. “Ah, ah! Akira!”

“H-hah, Ryuji…”

Sweat was starting to drip down Akira’s temples as he fucked their cocks together. Ryuji gazed up at him through half-lidded eyes, and his mouth was slightly parted as he panted heavily; Akira’s felt like his heart was going to explode at the sight of it.

He was losing himself, losing his grip as he neared closer and closer to his release, and as Akira leaned forward to kiss Ryuji again he heard the other man let out a desperate whimper against his lips before he felt wetness suddenly splash across his shirt. That was more than enough to tip Akira over as well, and the florist moaned as white sparks of pleasure blinded his vision, waves of ecstasy crashing over him and sweeping him away as he came.

A few more shaky thrusts was enough to completely drain Akira until he collapsed on top of Ryuji, panting into the sprinter’s neck.

“H-holy eff, that was awesome, Akira,” breathed Ryuji after he managed to somewhat recover.

“Yeah… you uh, felt really… good.”

“Heh, thanks, so did you,”

Akira chuckled, but the smile left his face when he was confronted yet again with the purple splotches that marred Ryuji’s neck. He gently buried his face into Ryuji’s shoulder, ignoring the bitter scent of the salve, and a pair of arms wrapped around his back to embrace him.

Akira was ready to lie there for the rest of the evening, but the stickiness clinging to his shirt was still there to remind him of the mess they had made.

“Blegh,” he exclaimed, “I almost forgot about cleanup.”

“Aw, gross, you’re right,” groaned Ryuji once he also registered the presence of drying cum. “I was ready to fall asleep with all of this on me too.”

Akira reached over to grab some tissues from the box on the coffee table, and the two of them tried to wipe off as much of the mess as possible before tossing the dirtied tissues into the nearby wastebin; Akira didn’t feel like dozing off again once they were finished tidying up though.

“So… what are we now then…?” asked Akira as he rested his head on Ryuji's shoulder again, a part of him still unable to believe that they had just crossed a border that went beyond being only friends.

“Well, that’s pretty obvious. We’re… dating now, ain’t we?” mumbled Ryuji.

 _dating_ …

The tension in Akira dissipated, and he couldn’t help but smile. “Hm, that’s fine with me. Means I can do something like _this_ ,” he lifted his head and kissed Ryuji on the cheek. “whenever I want now, right?” asked Akira with a sly smirk.

Ryuji blushed at that. “Y-yeah…” he spluttered, looking flustered for a moment before giving a mischievous smirk of his own. “But only if I can do crap like _this,_ ” Akira felt a hand tilting his chin up before he found his face suddenly being showered with kisses in retaliation. “Whenever— I— want,” stated Ryuji in in between kisses; a few fell upon Akira’s cheeks and forehead with many more on his lips.

“H-hey, cut it out!” laughed Akira as Ryuji continued to bombard him with affection. Ryuji gave a final lingering kiss on Akira’s lips before breaking away into laughter himself.

“Damn it, I just can’t effin believe how _right_ this all feels now,” beamed Ryuji. “You really are somethin’ special, you know that Akira? Being by your side always puts me in the best mood.”

“Me too, although it also kind of scared me how much I liked being around you,” admitted Akira.

“Hm, why’s that?”

“Well, I was pretty sure that you were straight, so there’s one thing, and I was afraid that if you found out I might have thought of you as… more than a friend, it would freak you out and you would stop talking to me.”

“Oh, shit. I’m really sorry Akira, I had no idea you felt like that…”

“You don't have to apologize. It’s all behind us now, anyways,” insisted Akira.

“Heh, alright, but if we’re doing confessions now, then I guess I have my own to say, too.” replied Ryuji; Akira felt the sprinter’s arms cling to him a little tighter. “To be honest, I was pretty freaked out too when I figured that I might’ve… thought that you were something better than a friend. Hell, you were supposed to be my pal, but convincing myself that I only saw you as a friend was way too damn difficult whenever we hung out. But now that I think about it,” he gave a warm smile, “this all just means we were worked up over nothing, huh?”

Akira smiled fondly back, “I guess so. I’m glad we got it all sorted out sooner than later though. Now we can do all of those cheesy, disgusting couple things.” he teased.

“Dude, don’t even start,” deadpanned Ryuji.

“Aw, why not honey?” lilted Akira.

“Agh, _stop_ ,” groaned Ryuji as he tried to push Akira off of him. Akira snickered and lifted himself back into a sitting position on the couch. The sprinter followed after him, glaring at Akira, but the corners of his mouth were lifted upward in amusement.

Rays from the setting sun filtered in through the window, washing over Ryuji in a gentle orange light that gleamed in his brown eyes. Akira stared at him, transfixed by the sight of it; he didn’t think he could take his eyes off of Ryuji ever again. All of the tenderness and affection he felt towards him, if Akira could only express it in words. The florist began to open his mouth…

Come on, what happened to the confidence he had a few moments ago?

“Ryuji,” he finally managed to start.

“Yeah?”

“I… ‘m glad to have you around,” he finished lamely.

Ryuji smiled at him. “Heh, glad to have you around too!”

God damn it.

“Ah shit, it’s already this late!” exclaimed Ryuji as he suddenly sprung up from the couch. “I gotta go, Akira, I have some errands to run, but I’ll see you around!” the sprinter hesitated before giving Akira a hasty kiss on the cheek. “See ya,” he beamed, his face dusted pink.

“Later, Ryuji,” replied Akira affectionately. He watched as the sprinter put on his shoes, turned to smile at him one last time, and opened the door.

The apartment was incredibly silent once he left.

That was, until Akira heard a meow and saw Morgana stroll out from around the corner. The cat leapt onto the couch and began nuzzling his head against Akira, meowing some more for attention.

“And where’d you run off to?” asked Akira while he stroked Morgana.

Morgana meowed again, and if cats could look annoyed, then Morgana definitely did.

Now that Akira thought about it, Morgana must’ve heard everything while they were doing _that_. The florist felt his face flush. “Don’t judge,” muttered Akira, feeling ridiculous about having to defend himself from his own cat.

Morgana trilled in what sounded like amusement before resting his head on Akira’s lap. Akira sighed and ruffled a hand between the feline’s ears.

“What am I going to do, Morgana?” murmured Akira, worry consuming the joy he had felt being with Ryuji. The blond was still reluctant to open up to him about the whole Kamoshida situation, but Akira couldn’t stand seeing that scumbag tormenting him anymore; there must be some way to prove that Kamoshida was the culprit…

Akira pulled out his phone and started to type:

**Akira: Hey, Makoto. I know we already saw each other today, but could we grab dinner together somewhere this evening? I have something important I need to discuss with you.**

**Makoto: Sure. Is everything alright, Akira?**

**Akira: I’m fine. This is more about Ryuji, actually. I’ll tell you more about it when we meet up.**

**Makoto: Understood.**

No turning back now.

* * *

 

“And so you two are finally together now? That’s wonderful Akira!” said Makoto delightedly.

The two of them were sitting together at their favorite sushi restaurant. Akira had just opened up to her about his newly made relationship (leaving out the unnecessary details), but the florist couldn’t find it in himself to return her enthusiasm.

“Thank you Makoto, but truthfully, I have something a lot more serious I need to discuss with you,” said Akira dejectedly.

Makoto’s brows furrowed together in concern. “What’s wrong, Akira?”

 “I think Ryuji’s getting abused,” he blurted out. It was straight to the point, at least.

Makoto’s eyes widened in shock, her chopsticks hanging limply from her hand. “You’re serious?” she asked.

“Absolutely,”

“That’s horrible! Do you know who it is?”

“I have a pretty good idea, but Ryuji’s not willing to share any details, so I don’t even know how to bring the culprit down,”

Makoto placed a hand under her chin in contemplation. “Well, if there was already sufficient evidence present, you could definitely make a case for abuse, but if there aren’t enough details then you’d need to conduct an investigation first and dig up more proof.” Makoto sighed. “I’m sorry, Akira. I wish I could help, but I don’t actually have any power to make decisions on this sort of thing,”

“Don’t be. Thank you anyways Makoto,” replied Akira kindly while his heart sank. Was there really nothing he could do to help then?

“Wait, that doesn't mean I don't know anyone who does have the authority to look into this,” stated Makoto. “I… know someone who can help you with this, but his rates aren’t exactly cheap…” she added grudgingly.

“Really?” asked Akira hopefully. “The money doesn’t matter, I’ll find a way to pay it off somehow, but can he really help?”

“He’s certainly competent, at the very least.” said Makoto reluctantly. “So if you don’t mind paying, he’ll get the job done. I’ll go see him later and propose your case,”

“Thank you so much Makoto,” If Akira wasn’t sitting down he would’ve hugged her. Instead, the florist lifted his glass in the air, “Cheers to the best police officer and future commissioner I know,”  he exclaimed playfully.

“Hey, we’re in public!” objected Makoto with a smile.

“Aw, but it’s true,”

“Fine, then I guess I have no right to complain,” chuckled Makoto.

* * *

 

“Oh? Who would’ve thought I’d see you of all people here, Nijima-san. How have you been?”

Makoto glared at the man seated comfortably in his office desk before her.

“I’m not here for idle chitchat, Akechi-san.” she stated, arms crossed.

 Goro smiled pleasantly. “I figured. You were pretty consistent about avoiding any interaction with me, even after we graduated from college,”

“Well, I won’t deny it. You always seemed to be a bit more… complacent than I approved of.” replied Makoto. “But that’s beside the point, I have some business to discuss with you Akechi-san.”

Goro chuckled. “Ouch. At least you’re honest about it. So, what business brings you here to my office today?”

“Listen, Akechi-san, I have a case to propose, and… I think you’re the only one who can help me with it. Since I’m not a police commissioner yet I don’t have any power to investigate this myself, but you, on the other hand...” muttered Makoto.

“Oh, who would’ve thought I’d see the day that you came to me for help. So, what’s in it for me then? Depending on your answer I might look into it,” replied Goro as he casually twirled a pen between his fingers.

“If it’s money you’re worried about then rest assured. There will be compensation.”

“Oh, that’s good and all, but I’m more looking for a reason as to why you came to me of all people. Surely you could’ve gone to any other private detective and asked for their help instead, so why me, someone you can only more-or-less tolerate?”

 “Akechi-san, normally I’d like to avoid interacting with you if I can help it. But I'll admit that you’re… remarkable at your job, and I’m going to need the best help possible since I’m doing this for a dear friend of mine.”

“Interesting, and just who exactly is this friend?” asked Goro, setting the pen aside and resting his elbows on the desk with his fingers laced together.

“Does it matter?”

“Not really, but I’m just curious as to who they must be to make you ask me of all people for help.”

Makoto hesitated before answering. “He’s the owner of a flower shop downtown. He also went to the same university as us, but I don’t think you’ve ever met him before. Akira. Akira Kurusu.”

Goro went silent at that.

“…I’ll take the case.” he finally stated.

Makoto nodded her head. “Thank you, Akechi-san.” she turned her back on Goro. “I finished what I came here for, so I’ll be on my way now. Have a nice day, Akechi-san.”

“Goodbye, Nijima-san.” called out Goro. “Oh, and don’t worry too much about the payment. I’ll be sure to give much more leniency on the fee, just for you,” he lilted with a polite smile on his face.

Makoto glanced over her shoulder at him, but the officer didn’t say another word as she turned her head forward again and walked away, the door closing behind her.

As soon as she was gone the smile slipped off Goro’s face: what a pretentious girl, thinking that her so-called sense of justice made her a cut above him.

Well, not that it mattered what she thought.

The detective rolled his office chair towards the file cabinet and pulled open the bottom shelf. He rummaged through the documents until he found the one he was looking for and dropped it on his desk.

The real reason Goro had asked for a name was so that he could look into the client’s records before determining whether or not he would accept the case, but if the person Nijima mentioned really was who he was thinking of…

Goro stared at the piercing gray eyes that glared back at him from the mug shot, the name “Akira Kurusu” clearly printed beneath it on the paper.

The detective couldn’t help but smile again.

He had finally found the person he so eagerly wanted to meet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Thanks for reading!)


	9. The Calm before the Calamity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Errr..... hi guys..... :'D  
> I'm so sorry, school has been stressful the past few months, but I'm up and running again! So without further ado, here's the next chapter! Thanks for sticking around!)

“Come _on_ , Ryuji, we’re going to be late!”

“Alright, alright, ‘m comin’…” mumbled Ryuji with a yawn, shuffling across the sidewalk as he dragged one foot in front of the other.

“Geez, you know, for an ace runner, you’re so slow sometimes!” huffed Ann. Glaring blue eyes and crossed arms waited impatiently for him by the campus gate.

“Can’t help it, pulled an all-nighter again… don’t feel like movin’,” sighed Ryuji while he continued to stumble forward until he finally caught up.

A set of knuckles rapped lightly against his forehead, causing him to wince at the slight sting. “It’s because you’re always playing video games or reading manga at some ungodly hour! Honestly, for all the years I’ve known you… some things about you have just never changed,” sighed Ann, although not without an amused smile tugging at the corner of her lips. “Well, at least try to act less like a zombie then, it’s our first day at the university after all! You have to admit it’s at least a little exciting.”

“Eh, I guess, but it honestly kinda feels like a waste of time,” replied Ryuji as he adjusted his school bag into a more comfortable position on his shoulder, “I mean, you’re doing modeling, and I’m doing track, so what’s even the point in needing to be here if you think about it?”

“Track?” Ann tilted her head to the side. “But how can you do anything in track?”

“Huh?”

Her response startled Ryuji out of his lethargy. He stared at Ann, wide blue eyes gazing almost piteously back at him.

Did they have this conversation before?

“I mean, with your leg like that… your life is over, right?” asked Ann, lifting a hand to point right below Ryuji’s knee.

His leg?

Ryuji looked down only to find that the entire bottom half of his right leg had completely vanished, leaving him to teeter on a single leg while blood dripped from the severed stump until he finally collapsed onto the ground. There was no pain, he only felt numb as he supported himself with his hands and remaining knee .

“Ryuji…” sobbed Ann. “What happened to us?” She knelt down and cupped Ryuji’s face in her hands. She was crying; cold tears splashed heavily onto Ryuji’s face, and he tried to reach out to her only to find himself paralyzed, unable to do anything except look helplessly at his friend’s anguished expression. “Am I going to be stuck like this forever? With that monster? I can’t, I… I don’t want to be with him anymore.”

“No…” he could move again, raising his arm to try and wipe the tears away, as if that single action alone could fix everything…

The ground beneath her melted, and down she fell, her eyes filled with terror as she instantly sank, an outstretched hand the last part of her to be seen before the ground swallowed up even the tips of her fingers.

He had been too slow; if he had just grabbed her hand before she had vanished, if only he had done something earlier…

“No, no, no…” muttered Ryuji, plunging his hands into the molten black goop, “Ann, Ann!” he cried as he desperately scooped away at the oozing muck and searched, and searched, and searched—

Ryuji woke with a start to find himself trembling and covered in a fine sheen of cold sweat. There were no tears this time at least. He sat up, wiping the sweat off from his forehead while he waited for his thoughts to settled.

Breathe.

Once his heart finally slowed its rapid pounding, Ryuji sighed and collapsed back onto the mattress: another nightmare. They used to only occur when Ryuji felt particularly low after a bad day, and even then it was unlikely, but they were becoming increasingly frequent to the point where the person with him would even switch around. Sometimes it was Ann, sometimes it was Shiho, but other times it was no one, just him crumpled up on the ground like a discarded ragdoll while the ground slowly swallowed him up, completely alone.

At the very least, Ryuji was grateful that Akira wasn’t here to see him have another subconscious breakdown. Talk about rotten luck that he got to see Ryuji in such a sorry state. Ryuji rolled over, clutching the sheets to his chest; he couldn’t help but recall Akira’s dusky silhouette sitting beside him that night, a gentle voice calling out to him from the darkness even though it must have been awkward as hell to see someone he barely knew crying from a bad dream of all things.

 He bundled up the sheets closer to his chest: his relief that Akira wasn’t around had shifted into a soft, aching pang of loneliness, but at the same time the recollection of Akira’s presence soothed him a bit. It provided a warm, comforting force that lifted the heaviness in his chest to the point where he could relax a little more, as embarrassing as it was to admit.

Ryuji soon found himself drowsy enough to finally shut his eyes again, and no further dreams disturbed him after he fell asleep.

* * *

 

By the time Ryuji arrived at the movie theater, Akira was already there waiting for him. He stood in front of the entrance, phone in hand as he casually swiped his thumb across the screen.

“Yo,” greeted Ryuji.

Akira looked up from his phone before tucking it away in his pocket. “Hey,”

Ryuji grinned as he advanced towards Akira. “You ready to head in?” he asked while he slung an arm around Akira’s shoulders.

Akira smiled and nodded his head. Ryuji withdrew his arm, and he walked inside with Akira right beside him; an order of large popcorn with two slushies and they were ready to start watching the movie. They sat in one of the back rows, Akira freely helping himself to the popcorn while Ryuji ate it sparingly, although sparingly really meant trying to grab less than a handful at a time (not that he paid much attention to his primary diet of fast food and ramen anyways: at the very least definitely not as much as he should). Halfway through the movie the popcorn bin was already empty, and Ryuji focused on finishing off the rest of his cherry slushie instead. He was too occupied with the climax of the movie and his slushie to register the weight of Akira’s head sinking onto his shoulder, absentmindedly leaning his head against Akira’s in return to close the distance between them. They stayed like that for the rest of the movie, Akira occasionally twisting his body this way and that to find a more comfortable position but never leaving Ryuji’s side. After the credits finished rolling they stood up to leave, the last ones left in an empty theater room, but halfway down the steps Ryuji felt Akira’s hand brush against his. That was probably a signal of some kind, right? Ryuji hesitated until he felt Akira brush his hand against him again just to be certain, and he cautiously grasped Akira’s hand into his own before lacing their fingers together.

For whatever reason the contact was making Ryuji queasy as they walked out of the room and oh _god_ _no_ were his hands starting to sweat? He wasn’t some damn middle-schooler stumbling around on their first date, something as simple as holding hands should _not_ be making him so damn nervous considering all of the shit he’s already done with Akira. Ryuji realized he was starting to tense up and clench around Akira’s hand, and he forced himself to relax before Akira noticed. They were just holding hands, but for whatever reason doing it in a public setting where anyone could see them…

“Um, Sakamoto-san?”

Before he knew it he was hastily snatching his hand away from Akira’s and whipping around towards the source of the voice while his stomach tied itself in knots.

Some chick, probably in her college years, maybe not even out of high school yet, stood before him, her hands clasped together and one foot pivoting into the theater carpet.

“You’re Ryuji Sakamoto, right?”

“Er, yeah. What about it?” he asked; he could feel Akira’s gaze boring into the side of his head.

“U-um, can I take a picture with you?” she asked eagerly, phone already whipped out in preparation.

“Oh, er, sure,” he couldn’t help but be taken aback; sure he had a fair amount of recognition now thanks to the Olympics from a few years ago, but it was still a surprise every time someone went up to him and wanted a photo considering he was still kind of a rookie.

The girl stepped toward him and gave an excited giggle as she turned around and lifted the phone to capture both her and Ryuji in the camera. Ryuji tried his best to give a cheerful-looking smile while the camera clicked.

“Ooh, this looks great, thanks Sakamoto-san!” beamed the girl as she lowered her phone to inspect the picture. “I’m actually on the track team right now for my university, so your story’s a huge inspiration for me! The sprinter who sprang back from a leg injury he got during his university years to compete in the Olympics!”

“Heh, thanks,” chuckled Ryuji. Even after all his years of being a sprinter, he still wasn’t used to hearing praise from strangers, let alone being called an inspiration of all things.

The girl turned her head towards Akira. “Are you friends with him?”

“Yeah, we’re friends,” interjected Ryuji before Akira could even open his mouth. The words had come out before Ryuji could even think about why he needed to say them, as if on instinct.

“Wow, that must be pretty cool, huh? Being friends with someone so well-known.”

Akira smiled and nodded, remaining silent.

“Well, I won’t bother you anymore then. Thanks again for the picture Sakamoto-san!” said the girl before walking away. Ryuji smiled and waved until she disappeared from sight. He turned towards Akira and noticed the way that his lips were pressed slightly together.

“S-sorry about that. I don’t have too many fans, but it’s always nice to talk to one if I ever come across them.” said Ryuji sheepishly.

“Don’t worry about it,” replied Akira. He was smiling, but Ryuji noticed that there was a slight strain to his voice, a sort of tightness that gave away no actual emotions.

 Akira didn’t offer his hand again after they left the theater.

The rest of the evening felt unusually awkward. They went to the arcade together and spent some time wandering aimlessly around the shopping district, but Akira seemed more distant than usual, his gestures stiff and his voice dull to the point of formal, always making sure he was at least a few inches apart from Ryuji. Finally, Ryuji couldn’t stand it anymore and forced Akira to sit down with him at the beef bowl shop.

“Alright, tell me what’s wrong,” stated Ryuji after ordering two large beef bowls for both of them.

“Well, nothing’s really wrong, per se…” muttered Akira.

“Bullshit, you’ve been off ever since I talked to that girl.” countered Ryuji. “Wait… you aren’t jealous, right? Akira, I know we haven’t been dating that long, but believe me when I say I’d never—”

 “Ryuji,” interrupted Akira. “You’re not comfortable with publicly expressing our relationship, are you?”

“H-huh? What makes you think that?” asked Ryuji defensively.

“You immediately took your hand away as soon as you heard that girl’s voice, and you told her that we were only friends when she asked how I knew you,” said Akira. The waiter gave them their food, and Akira absentmindedly prodded at the noodles with his chopsticks, flecks of broth splashing against the sides of the bowl. “I’m sorry, I know I’ve been acting strange, but I’m honestly struggling a bit on how to behave in public so it won’t cause you any more discomfort. I never even really paid any attention to it before since we were only behaving like how friends normally do, but now that we’re together, I can’t help but overthink about what’s okay to do and what’s not.”

Ryuji stared at him for a moment, speechless. He hadn’t… he never even thought… but now that he actually thought about it…

He knew that  a lot of couples would often do PDA and other crap like that, but when it came to being a relationship with another dude, trying to do the same things in public…

“It’s frowned upon by a lot of people,” started Ryuji, not eating his food either.

Akira nodded in agreement.

“And… I’ve never been in a relationship with another dude, either, so I don’t know how different it is from being with a chick. I guess when I heard that girl call out my name I kinda panicked on the spot. Like, if people found out that I actually ain’t all that straight, I can’t help but wonder if it would affect my reputation.”

“Right, and those are perfectly understandable reasons, Ryuji, so I want you to know that it’s fine if you aren’t comfortable in letting other people know about this.” Akira smiled. “I was just overreacting. Honestly, I’m perfectly okay with acting like good pals when there are others around.” the smile shifted into a sultry smirk. “Just means I have more to look forward to when we’re alone.”

Ryuji flushed at that and lightly punched Akira’s arm. “Dude!”

Akira laughed while he kneaded at the sore spot with his hand. He seemed significantly more pleased as he resumed eating his beef bowl, but Ryuji was too occupied in thinking to really dig in yet.

If the public found out, would they really make such a big deal out of it? Sure, there were always going to be assholes out there who made a shit-storm over stuff like that, but really, if something as trivial as his dating preference changed the way they viewed him, then that was their problem, not his. He thought about the girl again. Would she care if she found out? He thought about people like Kamoshida, their leering faces of glee upon finding out something they could try to exploit as a weakness, and suddenly he was angry with himself for allowing shit-bags like him dictate his behavior.

At the point Ryuji made up his mind; he joined Akira and ate up his beef bowl, satisfied now that his thoughts were settled.

They left the restaurant once they finished eating; Akira smiled and chatted with him like usual. The division that stood between them earlier was gone, but Ryuji wasn’t going to settle for only that, not this time. He grasped Akira’s hand in his own, a cheeky grin plastered across his face to hide his anxiety. Akira’s eyes widened in surprise for a moment, but his reddened cheeks and affectionate smile instantly made Ryuji forget about his nervousness. He pulled Akira closer to his side, the sleeve of Akira’s jacket brushing against his own, and continued walking down the street of the shopping district, side-by-side. They caught a few stares, but glancing back at Akira’s content expression, Ryuji couldn’t bring himself to care anymore.

He finally felt free.

* * *

 

“I wasn’t expecting you to change your mind, especially that quickly,” murmured Akira while he grasped Ryuji’s face between his hands.

 They were back in Akira’s apartment; the rest of the evening at the shopping district had gone better than Ryuji expected, and they had even encountered Ryuji’s fan girl again, who told them with a giggle that she had already guessed their relationship after she noticed their clasped hands before asking for another photo (“It’s not every day you get to encounter a renowned athlete twice by accident!”), and well… here they were, making out on his bed.

“Mm, me neither. But after you pointed it out to me, I guess I realized that I’d prefer making you happy instead of some complete strangers. Plus, it’s definitely something I enjoy too.” replied Ryuji before pulling Akira in for another kiss.

“Agh, you’re so good to me, Ryuji,” chuckled Akira. He shifted his weight so that he was positioned directly on top of Ryuji, Ryuji’s legs trapped between his. “I can’t help but want to give you a reward now,” said Akira with a smirk.

Ryuji gave a smirk of his own in return. “Oh, and what did you have in mind?”

“See for yourself,” purred Akira before leaning down to kiss Ryuji again. Ryuji moaned and allowed his mouth to slide open while Akira deepened the kiss. He bucked his hips upward as he felt one hand unzip his pants while the other one slid beneath his shirt to tweak at his nipples.

“Ngah, f-fuck, Akira…” moaned Ryuji while Akira cupped his growing bulge straining against his underwear.

“Oh, orange this time? Do you happen to own a pair of undies in every bright color out there?” teased Akira as he slipped the underwear down to his thighs.

“Man, _shut up_ ,” groaned Ryuji. Akira chuckled before grasping Ryuji’s length in his hand, giving it a few firm pumps that had Ryuji practically jolting off the bed.

“Hey…” murmured Akira.

“Mmph, y-yeah?”

“Er, so I was wondering… can I suck you off?”

 _What_.

Ryuji could feel heat burning the tips of his ears. “Huh? For real?”

Akira nodded as he worked his thumb over the slit of Ryuji’s cock, and Ryuji had to bite his lip to restrain a whimper.

“I-I mean, if you want to, I s-sure as hell won’t stop you…”

“Have you ever gotten a blowjob before?”

“Ah, no…”

Akira simply smirked and lowered himself so that his lips were hovering just inches above Ryuji’s cock, warm breath ghosting over the head, and Ryuji’s hands gripped tightly onto the sheets, clinging on for dear life in anticipation.

“Then I’m glad I could be the first,” purred Akira. He licked a long, languid stripe from the root to the head and Ryuji just _jolts_ ; he could feel Akira pressing his lips against his head before _oh god_ completely engulfing it, tongue swirling around the sensitive head and probing at the slit.

“M-mm, ah, A-Akira…” whimpered Ryuji. He tossed his head to the side, small moans escaping him as Akira slowly lowered himself around his cock. Soon he had taken him in to the hilt, dragging his tongue against the underside and sucking and Ryuji couldn’t hold back the whimpers that left him while Akira bobbed his head around his length. He whined while both hands left the sheets to card through Akira’s hair instead, riding the motion of Akira’s movements while he tried to buck his hips further into the slick warmth.

Akira made a wet noise that vibrated against Ryuji’s dick and Ryuji tossed his head back with a strained moan: he couldn’t last long, it was too much, the sight of Akira’s lips wrapped around his cock and the noises he was making added to how _good_ he felt…

There’s no time to warn Akira before he’s coming with a high-pitched whine down Akira’s throat, hips jerking forward while he rode his orgasm. Akira whimpered before pulling himself off of Ryuji’s cock, a string of saliva mixed with cum trailing from his lips to Ryuji’s member, and Ryuji almost died at the sight. Akira quickly stood up and rushed out the door, and a few moments later Ryuji could hear him gagging into the running sink. The faucet squeaked to a halt, and Akira reappeared with the biggest shit-eating grin ever.

“S-sorry, I wasn’t fast enough to warn ya’,” mumbled Ryuji weakly, the afterglow leaving him completely boneless. Akira shook his head as he sat back down on the bed. “Don’t be. Did it feel good, at least?”

“Hell yeah it did,”

Akira chuckled. “Glad to hear it.”

“Ah…” Ryuji glanced down and noticed Akira’s erection still straining against his pants.

“It’s fine. I can take care of it myself,” assured Akira.  
“N-no, I want to do it…” muttered Ryuji before hoisting himself off the bed to push Akira back down.

“Well, if you insist,” replied Akira with an exaggerated sigh as Ryuji unbuttoned his pants.

He tried to copy Akira’s motions, but he definitely lacked the experience. Akira was patient at least, allowing Ryuji to take his time as he worked his mouth around Akira’s cock. It was a lot more sloppy than how Akira did it, and the taste couldn’t be called pleasant, but Akira seemed more than content with his enthusiasm alone; Akira pulled out with a loud moan right before he came, white fluid splashing across Ryuji’s face and decorating his cheeks and the bridge of his nose with thick strings of come. Ryuji whined at the sensation, but the way Akira just looked utterly wrecked made it completely worth it. He was hard again, but he could wait until it went down on its own.

“Ugh, gross,” muttered Ryuji after he returned from his trip to the bathroom.

Akira shrugged his shoulders and gave an apologetic smile. “Er, sorry. I won’t deny it was hot to see though,”

“Me neither,” replied Ryuji, “I’ll probably jerk to the image of your mouth covered in my come for a while.”

“Ew!” laughed Akira while he pinned Ryuji onto the bed again. Ryuji also laughed and grasped Akira's cheeks between his hands, pressing their foreheads together while Akira’s hand clung to wrist.

“Hey…” repeated Akira.

“What’s up?”

“Do you want to spend the night here again?”

How could he turn that down?

“Jeez, feels like I’m spending more time here lately than at my own place.” joked Ryuji.

Ryuji agreed to stay, but this time he didn’t sleep on the couch. In the dark of night, he felt the steady rise and fall of Akira’s chest pressed against his back, Akira’s arm draped around Ryuji’s stomach to hold him close underneath the covers. It was comforting, to say the least, feeling the warmth of someone he cared so much about so close to him, and Ryuji allowed himself to doze off in peaceful contentment.

It ended up being the best night of sleep he had received in a while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ( Thanks for reading!! I apologize for any typos, I always find some way to miss at least a few ^^')


	10. Sympathique

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It could've been great.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Hey guys! Sorry for the delay... to be honest I kinda got into a writer's block with this story, heck I even considered shutting it down because I couldn't figure out a direction I liked for this ^^'  
> But you know what, I'm gonna try to see this to the end! Sure it might take several years, but I'm gonna try and give this the ending I want!  
> So yeah, thanks so much for sticking around to read it :D  
> These next few chapters will focus on Ryuji's backstory )

“Come _on_ , Ryuji, we’re going to be late!”

The warmth of the April sun did nothing to help keep Ryuji awake. He barely managed to drag himself out of bed on time and had settled on a pair of sweatpants and a baggy hoodie to face the day with. His hair was still mussed up, black locks pressed haphazardly into different directions, and his eyelids drooped precariously from fatigue as he stumbled forward.

“Alright, alright, ‘m comin’…” mumbled Ryuji with a yawn, shuffling across the sidewalk as he dragged one foot in front of the other.

Already in front of the campus gate, Ann waited impatiently for him, arms folded across her chest and glaring blue eyes squinted slightly in annoyance. “Geez, you know, for an ace runner, you’re so slow sometimes!” huffed Ann.

“Can’t help it, pulled an all-nighter again… don’t feel like movin’,” sighed Ryuji while he continued to stumble forward until he finally caught up. Embarrassingly enough, he had been too jittery about falling asleep in his new apartment, unable to accustom himself to the fact that he was officially living on his own for the rest of college.

A set of knuckles rapped lightly against his forehead, causing him to wince at the slight sting. “It’s because you’re always playing video games or reading manga at some ungodly hour! Honestly, for all the years I’ve known you… some things about you have just never changed,” sighed Ann, although not without an amused smile tugging at the corner of her lips. “Well, at least try to act less like a zombie then, it’s our first day at the university after all! You have to admit it’s at least a little exciting.”

Ryuji shrugged his shoulders and gave a languid smile. “Eh, I guess, but it honestly kinda feels like a waste of time,” replied Ryuji as he adjusted his school bag into a more comfortable position on his shoulder, “I mean, you’re doing modeling, and I’m doing track, so what’s even the point in needing to be here if you think about it?”

“Well of course it’s important. How else are you going to get recognized for your talent?” huffed Ann before turning away, stepping towards the gate. “Anyways, let’s get going. Can’t keep Shiho waiting for too long.”

“Fine,” sighed Ryuji as he trailed after her. Sure enough, Shiho was waiting for them underneath the shade of a tree not too far from the gate, the rustle of  spring blossoms gently swaying above her. Shiho smiled and waved once she saw them approaching, and when Ann was close enough she walked forward to give her a hug.

“It’s good to see you two again,” beamed Shiho. She let go of Ann and turned towards Ryuji, inspecting the messy hair and disheveled clothing.

“Another all-nighter?” she inquired.

“Get off my case,” complained Ryuji, finally taking the effort to comb his fingers through his hair to tame it.

Shiho chuckled in response and fixed up his clothing into a more presentable-looking state, adjusting his hood so that it wasn’t flipped inside-out anymore. “I’m glad we could all meet up before class starts. It’s helped me calm down a bit for our first day here. And we’re still trying that dessert shop we saw down the street after we’re done, right?”

“Of course,” beamed Ann. She playfully punched Ryuji in the arm. “Make sure you aren’t late!”

“Hey, me and Shiho gotta start watching what we eat from now on. Don’t go fattening us up.” teased Ryuji.

“So do I! But a treat every now and then doesn’t hurt.”

“But in your case, every now and then eventually turns into every day.”

Ann punched him again, but this time with a bit more force, causing Shiho and Ryuji to laugh as he rubbed at the slightly sore spot and looked at Ann's childish pout; he felt a little more refreshed now.

They parted ways to their different classes after that, and for the next hour Ryuji found himself on high alert despite his earlier exhaustion, actually managing to soak up what his professor was saying. But inevitably, his attentiveness gradually wore off as the day passed, and by the time classes were finally over his head felt like it was made out of lead and his thoughts had died down into a white noise buzzing in his brain.

Ryuji strolled down to the dessert shop Ann had wanted to try out, and surprisingly he found that he was the first one to arrive. He waited at one of the tables: Ann was the second one to walk through the door, and Shiho entered a few minutes later.

“It’s a miracle, you actually arrived before us,” gasped Shiho.

“Heh, who knows, maybe this’ll start to be a regular thing,” joked Ryuji.

They chatted and laughed with each other for the rest of the evening, already complaining about their new classes, and after they were done Ryuji left the shop in high spirits, cheerfully breathing in the cool night air as he strolled along the streets.

College was going to be alright with those two by his side.

* * *

With all of the rigorous training for track crammed into his schedule, Ryuji’s first year practically flew by, and before he knew it he was once again sitting in a classroom for his first day of the spring semester. He slumped into his chair, idly fiddling with the pen in his hand as he tuned out whatever the professor was saying. Eventually his thoughts started to drift and Ryuji found himself wondering what Ann and Shiho were up to, if they were also sitting in the classroom bored out of their minds. Ann probably was, but Shiho was likely taking notes and actually trying to learn like a good student.

Ryuji sighed and hunched over his desk, propping his head in the palm of his hand.

He had made a lot of friends thanks to the track team, but as a consequence of all of the training and competitions he had to participate in after classes, he had much less free time to hang out with Ann and Shiho. Summer break had made up for lost time at least, but still, things got pretty draining when all he could do was track, and Shiho probably felt the same as well with the volleyball team. It almost felt like he was falling out of sync with them.

After class ended, Ryuji made a trip to the locker room to grab his sports bag. He was still a little zoned out, body moving on autopilot down the familiar hallways, and right in the middle of a turn he accidentally bumped into someone else.

“Ah, my bad man,” he apologized.

The person he had bumped into was taller than him, and Ryuji could’ve sworn a look of something like pure disgust flitted across the other man’s face as he glared down at him. The look was gone as soon as it appeared, though, and the stranger gave a friendly smile in response to his apology. "It’s fine.” he replied good-naturedly before striding away in the opposite direction Ryuji was headed. Ryuji stared at his receding form for a moment before slowly turning around and resuming his course.

What was that all about?

* * *

The next time the three of them could hang out again would be a month later. This time they picked a beef bowl joint Ryuji had grown particularly fond of, and Ryuji happily slurped up his food in the booth table they sat at.

“Aaah, this really hits the spot!” sighed Ryuji before taking another bite.

“Hey, you’re spraying sauce everywhere,” protested Ann, pointing her chopsticks accusingly at him.

“Can’t help it, it’s just so good! Plus, you’d be pretty hungry too if all you did was train every day! Right, Shiho? You understand.”

Shiho didn’t reply. She stared, transfixed on the beef bowl that she had barely touched.

“Shiho?” said Ann.

No response.

“Hello? Anyone home..?” This time Ann nudged her arm, startling Shiho out of her trance.

“Ah! O-oh, um, sorry… what were you saying?”

Ann and Ryuji stared at her in concern.

“Uh… you feeling alright Shiho?” asked Ryuji.

“Yes, I’m fine! Sorry, I guess I’m a little tired after practice today.” answered Shiho with a small smile.

“Speaking of practice, so what’s Kamoshida-san like?” asked Ann.

“Who?” interjected Ryuji.

“You haven’t heard? He’s the assistant coach for the women’s Olympic volleyball team,” explained Ann. “Pretty soon he’s gonna take over since the current coach is about to retire, but that’s beside the point. What matters is that he’s at this school right now as a scout, meaning Shiho has a chance to get recognized!” She pulled Shiho in for an eager embrace. “I’m so happy for you Shiho!”

Shiho nodded and smiled in return. “Heh, thanks Ann.”

“I also heard he’s here as a temporary trainer since he used to be an Olympic volleyball player himself. He’s not too rough on you though, is he?”

Shiho opened her mouth for a moment but then closed it again. She smiled at Ann. “It’s pretty harsh, but it’s to be expected with the level I’m playing at.”

“Oh? Well aren’t you tough,” teased Ann. “But I really am glad that you’re pushing through, Shiho. You’re amazing!” Shiho continued to smile, but the bags underneath her eyes and the exhaustion in her breathy laugh were noticeable to both Ann and Ryuji. When Ann looked like she was out of things to say to try and lift her spirits, Ryuji decided to step in.

“Hey, where’s my praise?” objected Ryuji playfully.

 “Hm? Oh, fine, I guess… there, there, good boy.” stated Ann reluctantly, reaching across the table to pat him on the head

“What the hell was that? I ain’t a dog! See how you like it!” exclaimed Ryuji in exaggerated indignity as he stood up to pat Ann in retaliation.

“Woah, down boy! Sit!” commanded Ann while trying to swat his hand away.

Shiho giggled, an actual, contented laugh, and Ryuji and Ann stared at her with smiles of their own on their faces, glad that they could finally get some sign of life out of her.

It was the last time Ryuji would see a genuine smile from Shiho.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Thanks for reading!)


	11. Comes and Goes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Hey guys!  
> Sooo, in order to make time for my other WIP's, I'm gonna be making the new chapters shorter. ^^'  
> Hopefully this story will be finished before I die. ;-;  
> Thanks so much for all of your comments and kudos! It really means a lot and gives me motivation to write.  
> Anyways, hope you enjoy reading!)

Ryuji couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief once he entered his apartment. He turned on the lights and tossed his schoolbag to the side before taking off his shoes and trudging towards his bed, the mattress creaking below him in protest as he collapsed into the soft and inviting sheets. His muscles were on fire and his bones felt brittle after the extensive practice his coach had made him undergo earlier under the damned scorching sun, but it was nothing a quick nap couldn’t fix; he’d scrounge for something to eat later. Ryuji yawned, tossing his shirt and shorts to the side because his air conditioner was feeble at best before shutting his eyes, and it felt like he had only been asleep for a few minutes before his ringtone suddenly startled him awake. He groaned, screwing his eyes shut as he blindly slid his hand around the space next to his pillow in search of his phone. He opened them again once he felt his hand wrap around the offending object to see that Shiho was calling him, and… holy shit, he’d been asleep for _how long_?

Looks like he had to settle with cup noodles tonight.

Ryuji sighed before swiping his thumb across the screen and pressing the phone to his ear.

“Shiho?” he mumbled, stifling a yawn with his other hand. “What’s up?”

“Oh… hey Ryuji,” she said. A short, breathy laugh followed her greeting, but afterwards Ryuji couldn’t hear anything but the faint static of his cellphone.

“Shiho? You still there?” asked Ryuji after a few moments of silence passed.

“Yeah, yeah I’m here. Sorry, practice has me pretty burned out, so it’s kind of hard to think.” replied Shiho.

“Ugh, I know what you mean. I swear my coach is tryna kill us, and I’m guessing yours ain’t any better, huh?”

More silence, and Ryuji couldn’t help but start to feel concerned. “Shiho, is something wrong?”

“Ryuji, can I ask you something?”

That took Ryuji by surprise. He pushed himself into a sitting position on the bed, the sheets pooling around his stomach. “Uh, sure. What is it?”

“Do you ever feel like… sometimes it’s too much to handle? Like, I don’t know, are you okay with all of the training we have to do every day?” Shiho’s voice was quieter. “Today was pretty rough for me, so I guess I wanted to ask someone else to see if I’m just being too soft.”

“Hey, don’t think like that,” protested Ryuji. “I get it. I mean, hell, sometimes I get so tired and pissed that I just wanna cuss my coach out and walk off the field, but, uh…” he was never too good with words, especially not after he just woke up. “I guess, I’m motivated when I think about how all of this hard work is gonna pay off when I compete, you know? Like, yeah you gotta endure all of this bullshit and it hurts like a bitch when your whole body aches after training, but then the end results always make it… worth it, I guess? If that makes sense…” he trailed off and waited nervously for Shiho’s reaction.

“I…think I get it,” replies Shiho. Another pause, and then. “Thanks Ryuji, I’m glad we could talk.”

Ryuji smiled. “Heh, anytime. You know it’s not like you to be sappy, but I could get used to it.” he tossed the sheets off and swung his legs over the side of the bed. “Well, I still haven’t eaten, so I’ll see you later.”

“Ryuji, it’s almost midnight. What have you been doing?” chuckled Shiho.

“Hey, don’t judge. I fell asleep.” defended Ryuji.

“Well, at least try to eat something healthier than cup noodles, okay?”

“Sheesh, what are you, my mom now?”

“ _Ryuji_ …”

“Fine… well g’night then.”

“Goodnight.”

He hung up the phone and hauled himself out of bed, walking into the kitchen and rummaging through the cabinet for his overdue dinner, and while he was microwaving his cup noodles he grabbed an apple from the fridge.

* * *

 

The sound of excited shouts, shoes squeaking against the floor, and occasional shrill whistle of the referee echoed throughout the gymnasium. Ryuji was sitting next to Ann on the bleachers, and the two cheered together as they watched Shiho swiftly launch the ball into the air and run up towards the net.

“Go, Shiho!” shouted Ann, her voice joining the eruption of cheers and groans that thundered in the bleachers once the opposing school landed the winning blow.

“Kick their asses! _Wooh_!” cheered Ryuji while he pumped his fist into the air.

“Don’t shout stuff like that, you’re gonna get us kicked out!” scolded Ann. Ryuji gave a sheepish smile in return.

“Sorry, got caught up in the moment.”

The shrill sound of the whistle pierced the air to indicate a break between sets, and they watched the way Shiho joined her team in a group huddle before dispersing for water. Shiho’s team circled around the bag stuffed with water bottles, and standing beside it was a man impatiently waving his clipboard, his mouth moving rapidly and most likely shouting out strategies that were impossible for Ryuji to hear.

Ryuji almost did a double-take once he saw the man’s face: it was the same person he had bumped in the hallway a few months earlier.

The whistle shrilled again, and Shiho’s team hustled away back to their positions on court.

“Hey Ann, who is that?” asked Ryuji as he pointed his finger towards the man’s direction.

“Huh? Oh, that’s Suguru Kamoshida. You know, the famous volleyball player. I thought I told you about him.” shouted Ann over the noise of numerous voices chatting at the same time.

Ryuji didn’t respond, and Kamoshida must have noticed him pointing because he turned his head towards their direction, flashing a quick smile and staring back. Ryuji was tempted to roll his eyes, but he held his gaze until he noticed that Kamoshida wasn’t even looking at him. Instead, his eyes were transfixed on Ann for a moment too long before he gave a wink and turned away to observe the game. Ryuji felt Ann shudder beside him, not that he could blame her.

“Ew, no thanks,” muttered Ann as she pretended to vomit.

“Seriously, talk about effin’ gross.” agreed Ryuji while he stretched his arms above his head.

They kept cheering for Shiho for the rest of the game, and the bleachers erupted into an explosion of noise as their school ended with the winning score.

Getting out of the gymnasium was a pain: Ryuji felt like he was going to be crushed between the mass of people trying to leave at once. He managed to squeeze through the crowd until he finally caught up with Ann, and he joined her on the sidewalk to sit outside in the humid night under the light of a lamppost.

“Damn, remind me why we’re still here?” griped Ryuji as he pulled at the collar of his shirt to let in more air.

“We’re waiting for everyone to clear out so we can meet up with Shiho, remember?” explained Ann, swatting a bug away from her face. “We’ll wait inside once everyone’s gone.”

Ryuji was drenched in sweat and more than likely covered in bug bites by the time the crowd finally thinned out, and they stood up in unison to quickly rush back into the blissfully cool air-conditioning of the gym.

“We still need to wait for her to finish showering and shit,” complained Ryuji as they walked towards the locker rooms.

“Oh suck it up. We never complain when we have to wait for you to finish changing,” snapped Ann. “Plus, it—” her mouth clamped shut at the sound of furious talking coming from the end of the hallway.

Ryuji exchanged wide-eyed glances with Ann before cautiously treading down the empty hall. The voice grew gradually grew loud enough to the point they could discern some of the words:

“Unbelievable, your form was so fucking sloppy! Were you even paying attention during practice?” the words were harsh, but at the same time whoever was speaking never raised their voice above a certain level, as if they were avoiding any potential eavesdroppers.

They finally rounded the corner to see Kamoshida looming over the hunched form of a cowering girl, and upon closer inspection Ryuji could see Shiho’s crying face. He suddenly found himself being restrained by a struggling Ann as he reached for Kamoshida.

“Ryuji, no!” hissed Ann, fighting to keep him out of view. “Don’t escalate things!”

He took a deep breath and held it for a moment, forcing himself to relax so that Ann would let go of him.

“Let me handle this,” stated Ann, and Ryuji had no choice but to silently follow Ann around the corner and watch as she took matters into her own hands.

“Hello, Kamoshida-san,” greeted Ann with a strained smile. “I’m so sorry to bother you while you’re in the middle of…talking. But we actually need Shiho for-uh- important homework stuff.”

Ryuji cringed. What an awful lie.

Kamoshida whipped his head towards her direction at the sound of her voice. The tight contortion in his face suddenly melted into a confident smile once he caught sight of Ann, but Ryuji definitely caught it; his face had been in the same twisted expression he had seen before.

“Oh, are you Shiho’s friend?” asked Kamoshida. “Sure, go ahead.” He glanced at Shiho, who was still silently staring at the ground, her shoulders hunched together. “Well, go on.” When Shiho still wouldn’t move, he placed a hand on her shoulder and nudged her towards them, causing her to slightly stumble. “Come _on_ , don’t wanna keep your friends waiting.” chuckled Kamoshida. “What did you say your names were?”

“I’m Ann, sir,”

“…Ryuji,”

“Ann and Ryuji. It’s nice to meet you both.” although he was mostly looking at Ann while he said it.

“Yeah, well, we really should get going,” muttered Ryuji. “Let’s go guys,”

“Bye, Kamoshida-san,” said Ann as she gently pulled Shiho along by the wrist.

“Have a nice evening,” beamed Kamoshida.

They hurried down the hallway and out of the gym, and once they were sure Kamoshida was out of earshot Ann pulled Shiho into a hug.

“Shiho, are you alright?! That bastard was being way too hard on you!” exclaimed Ann, pulling away and grasping Shiho’s arms.

Shiho turned her head to the side. “It’s fine. Kamoshida-san was only trying to help me improve,” she mumbled quietly.

“Bullshit, that wasn’t advice, that was straight up harassment,” objected Ryuji. “You need to tell someone about this. He can’t talk to you like that!”

“And what do you think will happen if I tell someone?” snapped Shiho, startling Ryuji. “They might give him a warning, but that’s not going to put him off. If anything, he’ll just get angry and treat me even worse.”

“That’s… you don’t know that for sure,” protested Ryuji.

Shiho gave a bitter laugh. “One girl already tried to tell the school about him but he somehow managed to find out who it was. Not too long after she quit the team and from what I’ve heard got her athletic scholarship canceled.”

“What the hell? That’s so messed up! Why won’t the school do something about it? I mean, don’t they see a connection?” asked Ann. She was livid, eyes filling with fire.

“They definitely know, and they won’t do anything about it. Our win rates have only been going up because of his training, and the school cares more about its image than anything.” Shiho gently pushed Ann’s arms away. “And besides, it’s tolerable as long as you keep your head down and stay on his good side. It might be questionable, but you can’t deny the results he’s produced. This is for my future, guys, so let me deal with this on my own. Okay?”

“Shiho…” Ann was biting her bottom lip as Shiho walked past her. She tried to extend her hand towards Shiho only to lower it again as she watched her get further and further away.

“Sorry, but I’m really tired. Let’s hang out some other time.”

They watched as she slowly disappeared from view, leaving only the two of them behind on the empty sidewalk with nothing but the shrill cries of cicadas to fill the silence. Ryuji shoved his hands deep into his pockets and tapped the front of his shoe against the ground twice. “So what do you think about all this?”

Ann’s eyes were directed towards the ground, her arms folded across her chest. “As much as I hate to admit it, I think Shiho has a point. She needs to be on the team if she wants to keep her scholarship and chances of playing professionally.” She bit her lip. “But god, it’s so messed up! There has to be a better option than just letting him insult her like that.”

“So what are we gonna do about it then?” asked Ryuji.

Ann hesitated before answering, her brows knitted together in deep thought. “I think… we should hang around Shiho a lot more often. I’m gonna go to her practices right after my classes end and just watch. From the looks of it, the bastard’s trying to keep a good image around me, so I don’t think he’ll lash out when I’m around.”

“Sounds like a plan. I can’t do that because of track, but I can meet up with you guys right after practice.”

“Then it’s settled.” Ann’s eyes were filled with determination, and Ryuji returned her serious expression until her face suddenly lit up in remembrance. “Oh, and one more thing.” she grabbed Ryuji’s shoulders. “Ryuji, _promise_ me you won’t get physical with Kamoshida. Okay? Even if he’s being a complete asshole to Shiho, _do not_ hit him. I don’t want you getting in trouble because of him.”

“What? But what if—”

“No buts. If what Shiho said about him is true, then you’re the only one who’s gonna be blamed for it. Please, Ryuji? Don’t touch him.”

Ryuji let out a heavy sigh and rolled his eyes. He might as well give Ann some peace of mind.“…Fine.” he muttered.

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

It wasn’t like he was planning to get in a fight anyways. Just how damn impulsive did Ann think he was?

Ann let go of his shoulders, and the relief on her face was evident as she motioned for Ryuji to start walking with her. Still, it didn’t seem like there was anything else to say, and as much as Ryuji hated to admit it, he just couldn’t bring himself to be cheerful after a discussion like that. He could tell Ann felt the same way, and they ended up saying their farewells after a few minutes of walking together. They silently parted in separate directions, and the farther Ryuji walked the more drained he felt, his body weighing down with fatigue. Hopefully a proper night of sleep would fix him up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (thanks for reading!)


	12. Discontinued

**Important Update:**

Hi guys... so I'm sorry to disappoint you but this unfortunately is not a new chapter, nor will there most likely be any in the future either.

Truthfully, I've lost interest in writing altogether. This story was the first thing I got so invested in, but as time went on I didn't have the energy to continously update. I loved writing this, I really did, but it's safe to say that I'll never continue this again unless some time far into the future.

Thank you all so much for staying with me and reading this fic. I loved the feedback you gave me and I'm thankful you stuck around for so long.

I might still continue writing "A Thief's Folly", so you can probably catch me there :)

Bye for now, everyone.

 

**Author's Note:**

> It's a bit of a rough way to start off, but I live for awkward boys being awkward to each other. ;w;  
> Thanks for reading to the end of this chapter! I haven't quite figured out how long this story is going to be, but I hope you're willing to stick around to the end!


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